Shloka 28
Cyavana’s Water-Vow and the Ethics of Cohabitation (स्नेह-सम्वास-धर्मः)
ब्राह्मण्यां ब्राह्मणाज्जातो ब्राह्मण: स्यान्न संशय: । क्षत्रियायां तथैव स्याद् वैश्यायामपि चैव हि
brāhmaṇyāṃ brāhmaṇāj jāto brāhmaṇaḥ syān na saṃśayaḥ | kṣatriyāyāṃ tathaiva syād vaiśyāyām api caiva hi ||
युधिष्ठिर म्हणाला— ब्राह्मणी स्त्रीच्या गर्भात ब्राह्मणापासून जन्मलेला पुत्र निःसंशय ब्राह्मणच असतो. तसेच क्षत्रिया किंवा वैश्य स्त्रीच्या गर्भात जन्मला तरी तोही ब्राह्मणच मानला जातो.
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts a lineage-based view of varṇa: the child’s status as brāhmaṇa is affirmed primarily through the brāhmaṇa father, even if the mother is kṣatriya or vaiśya, emphasizing paternal descent in defining social-religious identity.
In the Anuśāsana-parvan’s dharma discussions, Yudhiṣṭhira raises or states a principle about birth and varṇa classification, framing how offspring are regarded when a brāhmaṇa father has children with women of different varṇas.