Shloka 11
Āśrama-dharma: Duties of the Four Life-Stages (आश्रमधर्मः)
कुर्वीतापत्यसंतानमथो दद्याद् यजेत च । संविभज्य च भोक्तव्यं धन॑ सद्धिरितीर्यते
kurvītāpatyasantānam atho dadyād yajeta ca | saṁvibhajya ca bhoktavyaṁ dhanaṁ saddhir itīryate ||
Bhishma dit : «Qu’on engendre une descendance pour perpétuer la lignée, qu’on fasse l’aumône, et qu’on accomplisse les sacrifices (yajña). La richesse—enseignent les vertueux—ne doit être goûtée qu’après avoir été partagée, justement distribuée aux autres.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse summarizes key duties of a householder: sustain family continuity (offspring/lineage), practice generosity (dāna), perform sacrificial/religious obligations (yajña), and treat wealth as legitimate to enjoy only when it is shared—i.e., used with distribution and social responsibility.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he states a normative rule taught by the virtuous: wealth should not be hoarded for private enjoyment but should be apportioned and shared, alongside fulfilling family and ritual duties.