Shloka 3
Vipulopākhyāna—Ruci-rakṣā and Śakra’s Māyā (विपुलोपाख्यानम्—रुचिरक्षणं शक्रमाया च)
अपीडयन् भूत्यवर्गमित्येवमनुशुश्रुम । पीडयन् भृत्यवर्ग हि आत्मानमपकर्षति
apīḍayan bhṛtyavargam ity evam anuśuśruma | pīḍayan bhṛtyavargaṁ hi ātmānam apakarṣati ||
ビーシュマは言った。「かく聞き伝えられている。施しは、己が養う者たちに苦しみを与えずに行うべきである。家族や扶養の者を苦しめ—分け前を奪い、飢えや辛苦を強いて—そのうえで布施をなす者は、まことに自らを貶めるのだ。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Charity must not be performed by harming those one is obligated to support; giving that causes suffering to one’s dependents becomes ethically self-degrading rather than meritorious.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma, he cites a traditional maxim: a donor should give in a way that does not oppress the household or dependents, warning that such oppressive giving leads to the donor’s moral downfall.