Shloka 18
Śrī-nivāsa: Traits and Conditions for the Abode of Prosperity (श्री-निवासः)
यस्मिज्जनो हव्यभुजं जुहोति गोब्राह्मणं चार्चति देवताश्च । काले च पुष्पैर्बलय: क्रियन्ते तस्मिन् गृहे नित्यमुपैमि वासम्
yasmin jano havyabhujaṁ juhoti gobrāhmaṇaṁ cārcati devatāś ca | kāle ca puṣpair balayaḥ kriyante tasmin gṛhe nityam upaimi vāsam ||
ビーシュマは言った。「人々が常に供物を聖火へと捧げ、牛とバラモンを敬い、神々を礼拝し、しかるべき時に供献と花の奉納を行う家—その家に我は絶えず赴き、住まうのである。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Auspiciousness and well-being abide in a home that sustains daily sacred duty: offerings to Agni, reverence for cows and brāhmaṇas, worship of the gods, and timely ritual offerings. The verse links ethical reverence and disciplined observance with the ‘residence’ of prosperity/fortune.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he describes the kind of household where auspicious presence (often understood as Śrī/Lakṣmī in the broader passage) naturally dwells—one marked by sacrifice, worship, and respect for key pillars of social-religious order.