Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 149
ज्येष्ठ-कनिष्ठ-धर्मः — Duties of Elders and Juniors
Anuśāsana-parva 108
महात्मनां च चरितं श्रोतव्यं॑ नित्यमेव ते । नरेश्वर! गान्धर्वशास्त्र (संगीत) और समस्त कलाओंका ज्ञान प्राप्त करना भी तुम्हारे लिये आवश्यक है। तुम्हें प्रतेदिन पुराण, इतिहास, उपाख्यान तथा महात्माओंके चरित्रका श्रवण करना चाहिये ।।
bhīṣma uvāca | mahātmanāṃ ca caritaṃ śrotavyaṃ nityam eva te | nareśvara | mānyānāṃ mānanaṃ kuryān nindyānāṃ nindanaṃ tathā | gobrāhmaṇārthaṃ yudhyet prāṇān api parityajet | patnī rajasvalā yā ca nābhigacchen na cāhvayet | caturthe ’hani sā snātvā rātrau gacched budhaḥ pumān | pañcame garbhadhānāt tu kanyā syāt ṣaṣṭhe tu putrakaḥ | samarātrau garbhadhānāt putraḥ syād viṣamarātrau kanyā ||
Wika ni Bhīṣma: “O hari, lagi’t lagi mong pakinggan ang mga salaysay ng mga dakilang-loob. Igalang ang karapat-dapat igalang, at sawayin ang nararapat sawayin. Para sa kapakanan ng mga baka at ng mga Brahmin, makipaglaban—kahit umabot sa pag-aalay ng sariling buhay. Kapag ang asawa ay nasa panahon ng regla, huwag siyang lapitan ni ipatawag; matapos siyang maligo sa ikaapat na araw, maaaring lapitan siya ng marunong na lalaki sa gabi. Sinasabi na ang paglilihi sa ikalimang araw ay nagbubunga ng anak na babae, at sa ikaanim na araw ay anak na lalaki; gayundin, ang paglilihi sa gabing pantay ay nagbubunga ng anak na lalaki, at sa gabing di-pantay ay anak na babae.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A king should cultivate dharma through regular hearing of exemplary lives, uphold social-ethical order by honoring the worthy and censuring the blameworthy, and be ready to sacrifice for the protection of cows and Brahmins; alongside this, household discipline is taught through rules of conduct regarding the wife’s menstrual period and traditional notions about timing of conception.
In the Anushasana Parva’s instruction section, Bhishma continues advising the king on proper royal and domestic conduct: he prescribes daily listening to purāṇa/itihāsa-style narratives and lays down norms for public duty (protection, warfare for righteous causes) and private life (sexual restraint during menstruation and timing-related beliefs about conception).