Shloka 3236
अन्नदान-प्रशंसा (Praise of the Gift of Food) | Annadāna-Praśaṃsā
वैश्यो राजन्यमित्येव शूद्रो वैश्यमिति श्रुति: । राजन! अब मैं तुम्हें सनातन कालका धार्मिक व्यवहार कैसा है
vaiśyo rājanyam ityeva śūdro vaiśyam iti śrutiḥ | rājann, adhunāhaṃ tvāṃ sanātana-kālasya dhārmika-vyavahāraṃ yathāvad vakṣyāmi | śrutaṃ hi naḥ pūrva-kāle kṣatriyā brāhmaṇān, vaiśyāḥ kṣatriyān, śūdrā vaiśyān sevamānā āsan |
Bhishma disse: “A tradição (Śruti) declara: ‘O Vaiśya servia o Kṣatriya, e o Śūdra servia o Vaiśya.’ Ó rei, agora te explicarei como era a conduta social justa segundo o dharma na antiga ordem, honrada desde tempos imemoriais. Ouvimos que, outrora, os Kṣatriyas serviam os Brāhmaṇas, os Vaiśyas serviam os Kṣatriyas e os Śūdras serviam os Vaiśyas.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma frames dharma as a time-honored social ethic grounded in received tradition (śruti), describing an idealized hierarchy of mutual obligations expressed through service: Kṣatriyas supporting Brāhmaṇas, Vaiśyas supporting Kṣatriyas, and Śūdras supporting Vaiśyas.
In the Anuśāsana Parva dialogue, Bhīṣma continues instructing King Yudhiṣṭhira on righteous conduct. Here he introduces an account of ancient customary practice regarding how the four varṇas related through service, presenting it as something ‘heard’ from tradition.