Shloka 11
दानफलप्रकरणम् — उपानहदानं, तिलदानं, भूमिदानं, गोदानं, अन्नदानं च
Gifts and Their Stated Results: Footwear, Sesame, Land, Cows, and Food
अपि पापकृतां राज्ञां प्रतिगृह्लन्ति साधव: । पृथिवीं नान्यदिच्छन्ति पावनं जननी यथा
api pāpakṛtāṁ rājñāṁ pratigṛhṇanti sādhavaḥ | pṛthivīṁ nānyad icchanti pāvanaṁ jananī yathā ||
Bhīṣma dit : Même de rois qui commettent des actes pécheurs, les hommes de bien peuvent accepter le don de terre ; mais ils ne souhaitent recevoir aucun autre présent. Car la terre est un don qui purifie, pure comme une mère elle-même.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma distinguishes between gifts: land (pṛthivī) is uniquely purifying and may be accepted even from morally compromised rulers, whereas other gifts are to be avoided by the righteous. The verse elevates the earth as intrinsically sanctifying, comparable to a mother.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma and dāna, Bhīṣma advises on what kinds of gifts virtuous people may accept. He states that even if a king is sinful, the righteous may accept land from him, but they refrain from taking other possessions.