Shloka 923
Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha
धर्ममेव गुरु ज्ञात्वा तृष्णा न गणिता त्वया । “जब मनुष्यमें दानविषयक रुचि जाग्रत् होती है, तब उसके धर्मका हास नहीं होता। तुमने पत्नीके प्रेम और पुत्रके स्नेहपर भी दृष्टिपात न करके धर्मको ही श्रेष्ठ माना है और उसके सामने भूख-प्यासको भी कुछ नहीं गिना है
dharmam eva guruṁ jñātvā tṛṣṇā na gaṇitā tvayā |
The father-in-law said: “Recognizing dharma alone as the supreme authority, you did not count even thirst as anything. When a person’s inclination toward giving awakens, his dharma does not diminish. You have regarded dharma as higher than attachment to wife and affection for son, and for its sake you have treated hunger and thirst as negligible.”
श्षशुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is to be treated as the highest authority; when one’s commitment to righteous giving and duty awakens, one does not let bodily cravings (hunger, thirst) or even powerful family attachments override moral responsibility.
A father-in-law addresses someone he is evaluating or praising, commending him for prioritizing dharma above personal comfort and familial affection, highlighting his steadfastness and ethical resolve.