Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 37
Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: Abhaya, Anugraha, and the Ethics of Honoring the Worthy (दानश्रेष्ठता: अभय-अनुग्रह-विप्रपूजा)
कथमेष्यति विप्रत्वं कुलं मे भूगुनन्दन । कश्नचासौ भविता बन्धुर्मम कश्चापि सम्मतः
katham eṣyati vipratvaṁ kulaṁ me bhṛgunandana | kaś cana cāsau bhavitā bandhur mama kaś cāpi sammataḥ ||
Sinabi ni Kuśika: “O ligaya ng angkan ni Bhṛgu, paano makakamtan ng aking lahi ang pagiging brāhmaṇa? At sino sa aking mga kamag-anak—isang iginagalang na salinlahi—ang unang magiging brāhmaṇa?”
कुशिक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames brāhmaṇahood as an attainment to be explained—inviting reflection on how spiritual status is grounded in dharma, discipline, and recognized excellence rather than merely in birth-identity.
Kuśika questions a Bhṛgu-descended sage about his family’s future: by what means his clan will reach brāhmaṇa status and which respected descendant will be the first in his line to become a brāhmaṇa.