Shloka 9
भूयांसं लभते क्लेशं या गौर्भवति दुर्दुहा । अथ या सुद॒ुहा राजन नैव तां वितुदन्त्यपि,राजन्! जो गाय कठिनाईसे दुही जाती है, उसे बड़े-बड़े क्लेश उठाने पड़ते हैं, परंतु जो सुगमतापूर्वक दूध दुह लेने देती है, उसे लोग पीड़ा नहीं देते हैं, आरामसे रखते हैं
bhūyāṁsaṁ labhate kleśaṁ yā gaur bhavati durduhā | atha yā suduhā rājan naiva tāṁ vitudanty api ||
Bhishma berkata: “Seekor lembu yang sukar diperah susunya menanggung derita yang lebih besar, kerana orang akan menekan dan menyeksanya demi mendapatkan susu. Tetapi lembu yang mudah mengeluarkan susu, wahai Raja, tidak dicucuk atau disakiti; ia dipelihara dengan selesa.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that a harsh, unyielding disposition often attracts forceful treatment and greater suffering, while a gentle, accommodating disposition tends to receive kinder handling and protection—illustrated through the contrast between a hard-to-milk cow and an easy-to-milk cow.
In Shanti Parva, Bhishma instructs King Yudhishthira on dharma through practical examples. Here he uses a rural, familiar image—milking a cow—to convey how people respond differently to resistance versus cooperation, drawing an ethical lesson about conduct and its consequences.