Shloka 21
पापात्म-धर्मात्म-लक्षणम् तथा निर्वेदेन मोक्षमार्गः | Marks of the Sinful and the Righteous; Dispassion (Nirveda) as a Path to Liberation
पिता धर्म: पिता स्वर्ग: पिता हि परमं तपः । पितरि प्रीतिमापन्ने सर्वा: प्रीयन्ति देवता:,“इसलिये पिता धर्म है, पिता स्वर्ग है और पिता ही सबसे बड़ी तपस्या है। पिताके प्रसन्न होनेपर सम्पूर्ण देवता प्रसन्न हो जाते हैं
pitā dharmaḥ pitā svargaḥ pitā hi paramaṃ tapaḥ | pitari prītim āpanne sarvāḥ prīyanti devatāḥ ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Ayah adalah dharma; ayah adalah surga; ayah adalah tapa yang tertinggi. Bila ayah berkenan, seakan-akan semua dewa pun berkenan.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Honoring and serving one’s father is presented as a direct embodiment of dharma, a source of spiritual merit comparable to heaven, and a supreme form of tapas; pleasing the father symbolizes aligning oneself with the divine moral order, thereby ‘pleasing the gods’.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct, Bhishma is advising Yudhishthira on ethical duties; here he emphasizes the primacy of filial reverence, especially toward the father, as a foundational pillar of dharma.