Shloka 15
Śuka’s Nirveda: Vyāsa’s Admonition on Dharma, Impermanence, and ‘Imperishable Wealth’ (अक्षय-धन)
सत्कृता चैकपत्नी च जात्या योनिरिहेष्यते । ऋग्यजु:सामगो विद्वान् षट्कर्मा पात्रमुच्यते
satkṛtā caikapatnī ca jātyā yoniriheṣyate | ṛgyajuḥsāmago vidvān ṣaṭkarmā pātram ucyate ||
Bhīṣma dit : Une femme honorée (par son époux), vouée à un seul mari, et née d’une lignée estimée est tenue ici pour un « ventre excellent »; ainsi, celui qui naît d’une telle mère est considéré comme pur par la naissance. De plus, le brāhmaṇa versé dans les Veda Ṛg, Yajur et Sāma, et qui accomplit constamment les six devoirs prescrits (offrir et faire offrir le sacrifice, étudier et enseigner, donner et recevoir des dons), est dit pur par la conduite et apte à recevoir des présents.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma distinguishes two bases of worthiness: purity by birth (being born from a respected, faithful, well-born mother) and purity by conduct (a Brāhmaṇa’s Vedic learning and steady performance of the six prescribed duties), concluding that such a person is a ‘pātra’—a fit recipient of gifts and social trust.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhīṣma continues advising Yudhiṣṭhira by describing markers of social and ritual eligibility: the mother’s recognized virtue and lineage, and the Brāhmaṇa’s Vedic competence together with disciplined performance of traditional obligations.