Shloka 35
Adhyāya 64: Dāna-prakāra—Suvarṇa, Pānīya-dāna, Ghṛta-dāna, and Upakaraṇa-dāna
Utility Gifts
अथाहु: सर्वमेवैति भूयो<5र्धमिति निश्चय: । चतुर्थ मतमस्माकं मनो: श्रुत्वानुशासनम्
atha āhuḥ sarvam evaiti bhūyo 'rdham iti niścayaḥ | caturthaṁ matam asmākaṁ manoḥ śrutvānūśāsanam ||
Disse Bhīṣma: “Alguns afirmam que todo o peso do pecado recai sobre o rei; outros estão certos de que o rei suporta mais da metade. Mas, tendo ouvido a instrução de Manu, nossa conclusão é esta: o rei recebe apenas a quarta parte desse pecado.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma reports differing views on how much sin a king incurs for wrongdoing in his realm, and endorses Manu’s rule: the king bears a defined, limited share—one quarter—rather than the whole or more than half. The point is to frame royal responsibility as real but proportionate, distributed among other responsible agents as well.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma (especially duties and accountability of rulers), he cites competing opinions and then appeals to Manu as authoritative. He states his settled conclusion based on Manu’s ordinance regarding the king’s fractional share in the sin arising from subjects’ misdeeds or governance failures.