Shloka 56
Putra-Bheda: Kṣetraja, Kṛtaka, Apasada, and Saṃskāra Determinations (पुत्रभेद-निर्णयः)
अपूजिताश्च यत्रैता: सर्वास्तित्राफला: क्रिया: । जहाँ स्त्रियोंका आदर-सत्कार होता है वहाँ देवतालोग प्रसन्नतापूर्वक निवास करते हैं तथा जहाँ इनका अनादर होता है वहाँकी सारी क्रियाएँ निष्फल हो जाती हैं
apūjitāś ca yatraitāḥ sarvāstītrāphalāḥ kriyāḥ |
Itinuro ni Bhishma na ang paggalang sa mga babae ay isang mapagpasiyang sukatan ng dharma: kung saan iginagalang at pinararangalan nang wasto ang mga babae, ang mga kapangyarihang banal ay nalulugod na manahan; ngunit kung saan sila nilalapastangan, ang bawat ritwal, tungkulin, at gawain ay nauuwi sa kawalan ng bunga.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Respecting and honoring women is presented as a foundational dharmic principle: it brings divine favor and makes one’s religious and moral actions effective; dishonor toward women nullifies the merit and results of one’s rites and duties.
In the Anushasana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma and right conduct. Here he emphasizes a social-ethical rule: the treatment of women in a household or society determines whether sacred acts and duties bear fruit.