Shloka 5
Go-dāna-phala-nirdeśa
Merit and Destinations from the Gift of Cows
स्वकर्मनिरतानां च शूराणां चापि कि फलम् । शौचे च कि फल प्रोक्त ब्रह्मचर्यें च कि फलम्
svakarmaniratānāṁ ca śūrāṇāṁ cāpi ki phalam | śauce ca ki phalaṁ proktaṁ brahmacaryeṁ ca ki phalam ||
स्वकर्मनिरतानां च शूराणां चापि किं फलम्। शौचे च किं फलं प्रोक्तं ब्रह्मचर्ये च किं फलम्॥
युधिछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharma-inquiry: actions and disciplines (steadfast performance of one’s duty, purity, and brahmacarya) are evaluated by their ‘phala’—the moral and spiritual consequences they yield. It sets up a discussion on how inner discipline and righteous conduct generate merit and shape one’s destiny.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused setting, Yudhiṣṭhira asks an elder authority to clarify the rewards promised for (1) heroes devoted to their own duties, and (2) the observances of śauca and brahmacarya—seeking a principled understanding of conduct and its results.