Shloka 12
गोमूल्यनिर्णयः — The Determination of Value through the Cow
Nahuṣa–Cyavana Episode
बन्दी तु जायते वैश्यान्मागधो वाक्यजीवन: । शूद्रान्निषादो मत्स्यघ्न: क्षत्रियायां व्यतिक्रमात्
bhīṣma uvāca | bandī tu jāyate vaiśyān māgadho vākyajīvanaḥ | śūdrān niṣādo matsyaghnaḥ kṣatriyāyāṃ vyatikramāt ||
Bhishma said: From a Vaiśya man, when there is a transgressive union with a Kṣatriya woman, a son is born who is called Bandī or Māgadha; he makes his living by speech—by praising and proclaiming others. Likewise, from a Śūdra man, through such a transgression with a Kṣatriya woman, there arises the Niṣāda, whose occupation is the killing of fish. The verse frames social identity and livelihood as consequences of crossing prescribed boundaries, presenting it as a matter of dharma and social order.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents a dharma-based view that crossing prescribed social boundaries (vyatikrama) is consequential, producing specific social identities and associated livelihoods; it uses genealogy to reinforce norms of social order.
Bhishma is instructing on dharma and social classifications, describing the traditional epic account of how certain groups (Bandī/Māgadha and Niṣāda) are said to arise from transgressive unions involving a Kṣatriya woman, and what occupations they are associated with.