Cyavana’s Water-Vow and the Ethics of Cohabitation (स्नेह-सम्वास-धर्मः)
वैषम्यादथवा लोभात् कामाद् वापि परंतप । ब्राह्मणस्य भवेच्छूद्रा न तु दृष्टान्तत: स्मृता
vaiṣamyād athavā lobhāt kāmād vāpi paraṃtapa | brāhmaṇasya bhavec chūdrā na tu dṛṣṭāntataḥ smṛtā ||
ພີສະມະກ່າວວ່າ: «ໂອ ຜູ້ເຜົາຜານສັດຕູ! ຈະເປັນເພາະລໍາເອີຍ, ຫຼືເພາະຄວາມໂລບ, ຫຼືເພາະກາມຕັນຫາ, ຍິງຊູດຣະ (Śūdra) ອາດກາຍເປັນເມຍຂອງພຣາຫມະນະ (Brāhmaṇa) ໄດ້; ແຕ່ໃນຊາສະຕຣະ (śāstra) ບໍ່ໄດ້ຈື່ຈໍາວ່າເປັນແບບຢ່າງ ຫຼືກົດທີ່ອະນຸຍາດ».
भीष्म उवाच
Bhishma distinguishes between what may happen in practice due to bias, greed, or desire and what is actually authorized by śāstra: an occurrence does not automatically become dharma unless supported by recognized scriptural precedent.
In his instruction to the king, Bhishma discusses norms of conduct and social regulation, noting that certain cross-varṇa marital outcomes can occur through human failings, but he denies that such cases are upheld as a formal rule in the remembered tradition.