Shloka 26
Cyavana’s Water-Vow and the Ethics of Cohabitation (स्नेह-सम्वास-धर्मः)
सा हि पुत्रसमा राजन् विहिता कुरुनन्दन । एवमेव समुद्दिष्टो धर्मो वै भरतर्षभ । एवं धर्ममनुस्मृत्य न वृथा साधयेद् धनम्
sā hi putrasamā rājan vihitā kurunandana | evam eva samuddiṣṭo dharmo vai bharatarṣabha | evaṃ dharmam anusmṛtya na vṛthā sādhayed dhanam, kurunandana ||
Bhishma berkata: “Wahai raja, wahai kebanggaan kaum Kuru, seorang anak perempuan sesungguhnya ditetapkan oleh śāstra sebagai setara dengan anak lelaki. Demikianlah, wahai yang utama antara keturunan Bharata, telah dinyatakan aturan dharma yang benar tentang pembahagian harta. Dengan mengingati dan merenungi dharma ini, hendaklah seseorang memperoleh dan menyimpan kekayaan bukan dengan sia-sia, wahai Kurunandana—tetapi menjadikannya berbuah melalui korban suci dan upacara-upacara keramat.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that śāstra recognizes the daughter as equal to the son in principle, and that wealth should be acquired and held in accordance with dharma—made meaningful through righteous distribution and sanctified use (e.g., sacrifices and religious duties), not hoarded fruitlessly.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma continues instructing King Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he summarizes a rule concerning rightful division of wealth and urges that wealth be pursued with ethical remembrance and directed toward meritorious ends.