Shloka 6
लुब्धक-कपोत-कपोती-आख्यानम्
The Hunter and the Pigeon Couple: Expiation and Refuge-Ethics
न गृहं गृहमित्याहुर्गृहिणी गृहमुच्यते । गृहं तु गृुहिणीहीनमरण्यसदृशं मतम्,*वास्तवमें घरको घर नहीं कहते, घरवालीका ही नाम घर है। घरवालीके बिना जो घर होता है, उसे जंगलके समान ही माना गया है
na gṛhaṃ gṛham ity āhur gṛhiṇī gṛham ucyate | gṛhaṃ tu gṛhiṇī-hīnam araṇya-sadṛśaṃ matam ||
Orang tidak menyebut sekadar bangunan sebagai ‘rumah’; sang nyonya rumah-lah yang sesungguhnya disebut ‘rumah’. Rumah yang kehilangan istri sang kepala keluarga dipandang laksana rimba belantara.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that ‘home’ is not merely a physical structure; it becomes a true household through the presence and role of the gṛhiṇī, who sustains domestic order, hospitality, and daily dharma. Without her, the house is ethically and socially ‘empty,’ likened to a forest.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he emphasizes the value of the household stage of life and the central place of the gṛhiṇī in maintaining a functioning, dharmic home.