Shloka 8
गोमूल्यनिर्णयः — The Determination of Value through the Cow
Nahuṣa–Cyavana Episode
दे चापि भारये वैश्यस्य द्वयोरात्मास्य जायते । शूद्रा शूद्रस्य चाप्येका शूद्रमेव प्रजायते
dve cāpi bhārye vaiśyasya dvayor ātmāsya jāyate | śūdrā śūdrasya cāpy ekā śūdram eva prajāyate ||
Bhishma berkata: “Seorang Vaishya dikatakan mempunyai dua isteri—seorang daripada kelas Vaishya dan seorang daripada kelas Śūdra; dan daripada mana-mana antara kedua-duanya, anak yang lahir dianggap tergolong sebagai Vaishya. Seorang Śūdra pula hanya mempunyai seorang isteri, seorang Śūdrā, dan dia melahirkan hanya seorang Śūdra.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse states a normative rule within varṇa-dharma discourse: a Vaiśya may have two wives (Vaiśyā and Śūdrā) and the offspring is treated as Vaiśya, whereas a Śūdra has only a Śūdrā wife and the offspring is Śūdra.
Bhīṣma is instructing Yudhiṣṭhira in the Anuśāsana Parva on dharma-related social regulations, here describing accepted marital options and the ascription of a child’s varṇa in those unions.