Shloka 34
गोमूल्यनिर्णयः — The Determination of Value through the Cow
Nahuṣa–Cyavana Episode
गोब्राह्मणाय साहाय्य॑ कुर्वाणा वै न संशय: । आनुृशंस्यमनुक्रोश: सत्यवाक्यं तथा क्षमा
gobrāhmaṇāya sāhāyyaṁ kurvāṇā vai na saṁśayaḥ | ānṛśaṁsyam anukrośaḥ satyavākyaṁ tathā kṣamā puruṣasiṁha |
ビーシュマは言った。「疑いはない。たとえ出自が混じり合う者であっても、牛とバラモンを助け、残酷な行いを捨て、万物に慈悲を施し、真実を語り、赦しを修めるなら、真の霊的向上に至りうる。おお、人中の獅子よ。慈悲・真実・忍耐に根ざすその行いが、より高き福祉への道を開くのだ。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that ethical virtues—helping cows and brāhmaṇas, practicing non-cruelty and compassion, speaking truth, and forgiving others—are powerful enough to bring genuine spiritual welfare even to those viewed as socially disadvantaged; moral conduct, not birth alone, is emphasized as the means to uplift.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma continues advising the royal listener (addressed as 'puruṣasiṁha') on dharma. Here he lists specific virtues and charitable duties and asserts confidently that such conduct leads to higher good, removing doubt about the possibility of improvement for marginalized groups.