Shloka 29
Go-dāna-phala-nirdeśa
Merit and Destinations from the Gift of Cows
अश्वमेधसहस्रं च सत्यं च तुलया धृतम् । अश्वमेधसहस्राद्धि सत्यमेव विशिष्यते
aśvamedhasahasraṃ ca satyaṃ ca tulayā dhṛtam | aśvamedhasahasrād dhi satyam eva viśiṣyate ||
Sabi ni Bhīṣma: “Kung ilalagay sa timbangan ang gantimpala ng isang libong handog na Aśvamedha at ang Katotohanan, hihigit ang bigat ng Katotohanan sa isang libong Aśvamedha. Sapagkat ang Katotohanan ay nakahihigit kahit sa gantimpala ng isang libong handog ng kabayo.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Truthfulness is presented as a higher dharmic value than even the immense ritual merit of a thousand Aśvamedha sacrifices; moral integrity outweighs ceremonial achievement.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma, he uses a vivid comparison—placing ‘a thousand Aśvamedhas’ and ‘Truth’ on a scale—to teach that satya is the heavier, superior virtue.