Shloka 26
Bhūmi-dānasya Māhātmya
The Pre-eminence of Land-Gift
अतीतानागते चोभे पितृवंशं च भारत । तारयेद् वृक्षरोपी च तस्माद् वक्षांश्ष रोपयेत्
atītānāgate cobhe pitṛvaṁśaṁ ca bhārata | tārayet vṛkṣaropī ca tasmād vṛkṣāṁś ca ropayet bharatanandana ||
ಓ ಭಾರತ! ವೃಕ್ಷಗಳನ್ನು ನೆಡುವವನು ಅಗಲಿಹೋದ ಪೂರ್ವಜರನ್ನೂ, ಮುಂದೆ ಬರಲಿರುವ ಸಂತತಿಯನ್ನು—ಇಬ್ಬರನ್ನೂ, ಹಾಗೆಯೇ ಸಮಸ್ತ ಪಿತೃವಂಶವನ್ನೂ ಉದ್ಧರಿಸುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಆದ್ದರಿಂದ, ಓ ಭರತನಂದನ, ವೃಕ್ಷಗಳನ್ನು ನಿಶ್ಚಯವಾಗಿ ನೆಡಬೇಕು।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Planting trees is presented as a powerful dharmic act whose benefit extends beyond the individual to ancestors, descendants, and the whole lineage—an ethical duty with long-term, life-sustaining consequences.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma advises Yudhiṣṭhira on righteous conduct and merit-producing deeds, here emphasizing tree-planting as a means of welfare and spiritual uplift for one’s family line across time.