Shloka 25
Brāhmaṇa-vandana: Criteria for Veneration, Disciplined Speech, and Protective Kingship (अनुशासनपर्व, अध्याय ८)
(दूरतो मातृवत् पूज्या विप्रदारा: सुरक्षया ।) सरल
dūrato mātṛvat pūjyā vipradārāḥ surakṣayā | tejasas tapasaś caiva nityaṃ bibhyed yudhiṣṭhira | ubhe caite parityājye tejaś caiva tapas tathā ||
Wika ni Bhīṣma: “O Yudhiṣṭhira, ang mga asawa ng mga Brāhmaṇa ay dapat parangalan mula sa marangal na layo, gaya ng paggalang sa isang ina, at tiyaking sila’y napangangalagaan. Dapat laging mangilabot sa banal na ningning at lakas ng tapas (pagpapakasakit/ascetisismo) ng isang Brāhmaṇa; at sa kanilang harapan, talikdan ang anumang pagmamataas sa sariling talino, ningning, o austeridad. Ang paggalang, pagpipigil, at pagpapakumbaba sa harap ng gayong sagradong kapangyarihan ay anyo rin ng dharma.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that sacred authority grounded in learning and austerity must be approached with humility and restraint. One should honor Brāhmaṇas and especially safeguard and respectfully revere their wives, while abandoning any ego about one’s own power or ascetic achievements.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on conduct (dharma). Here he emphasizes social and ethical discipline: reverence toward Brāhmaṇas, protective respect toward their wives, and an attitude of awe toward the spiritual potency (tejas, tapas) associated with ascetic life.