Shloka 41
Go-dāna-phala-nirdeśa
Merit and Destinations from the Gift of Cows
तस्य राजन् फल विद्धि स्वलोके स्थानमर्चितम् | न च पश्येत नरकं गुरुशुश्रूषया55त्मवान्,राजन! जो पिता-माता, बड़े भाई, गुरुऔर आचार्यकी सेवा करता है और कभी उनके गुणोंमें दोषदृष्टि नहीं करता है, उसको मिलनेवाले फलको जान लो। उसे स्वर्गलोकमें सर्वसम्मानित स्थान प्राप्त होता है। मनको वशमें रखनेवाला वह पुरुष गुरुशुश्रूषाके प्रभावसे कभी नरकका दर्शन नहीं करता
tasya rājan phala viddhi svaloke sthānam arcitam | na ca paśyet narakaṁ guruśuśrūṣayātmavān ||
Bhīṣma disse: “Ó rei, conhece o fruto de tal conduta: no mundo celeste alcança-se uma posição honrada e reverenciada. E o homem senhor de si, pelo serviço devotado aos anciãos e mestres, jamais chega a contemplar o inferno.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Devoted service to elders and teachers (guruśuśrūṣā), coupled with self-control, yields exalted honor in heaven and protects one from falling into hell—highlighting reverence and obedience as central duties within dharma.
In Anushasana Parva, Bhishma instructs King Yudhishthira on righteous conduct. Here he states the spiritual outcome of serving one’s gurus/elders: an honored place in the heavenly realm and freedom from the experience of hell.