Shloka 96
Taḍāga-Phala and Vṛkṣāropaṇa
Merit of Ponds and Tree-Planting
[सिवासे शूद्रोंकी परम गति, शौचाचार, सदाचार तथा वर्णधर्मका कथन एवं संन्यासियोंके धर्मोका वर्णन और उससे उनको परम गतिकी प्राप्ति] युधिछिर उवाच शूद्राणामिह शुश्रूषा नित्यमेवानुवर्णिता । कै: कारणै: कतिविधा शुश्रूषा समुदाह्वता ।।
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
śūdrāṇām iha śuśrūṣā nityam evānvarṇitā |
kaiḥ kāraṇaiḥ katividhā śuśrūṣā samudāhṛtā ||
ke ca śuśrūṣayā lokā vihitā bharatarṣabha |
śūdrāṇāṃ bharataśreṣṭha brūhi me dharmalakṣaṇam ||
bhīṣma uvāca |
atrāpy udāharantīmam itihāsaṃ purātanam |
śūdrāṇām anukampārthaṃ yad uktaṃ brahmavādinā ||
Yudhiṣṭhira demanda : «Aïeul vénérable, en ce monde, le service (śuśrūṣā) est sans cesse décrit comme le devoir suprême des Śūdras—le service rendu aux deux-fois-nés. Pour quelles raisons ce service est-il enseigné, et en combien de formes dit-on qu’il existe ? Et quels mondes (destinées) sont assignés aux Śūdras par un tel service ? Ô taureau parmi les Bharata, ô le meilleur des Bharata, explique-moi les marques qui définissent ce dharma.» Bhīṣma répondit : «Sur ce point aussi, on cite un récit ancien : ce qu’un Brahmavādin (un maître voué à Brahman) a dit par compassion pour les Śūdras.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage frames śuśrūṣā—disciplined, respectful service—as a central dharma for Śūdras, and asks for its rationale, its classifications, and the spiritual/post-mortem outcomes (lokas) said to follow from it. Bhīṣma signals that the answer will be grounded in an authoritative ancient narrative spoken compassionately for Śūdras.
Yudhiṣṭhira questions Bhīṣma about why service to the twice-born is repeatedly taught for Śūdras and what it yields. Bhīṣma begins his reply by invoking an old itihāsa (illustrative tradition) attributed to a brahmavādin teacher, setting up a longer didactic discourse that follows.