Shloka 48
गोमूल्यनिर्णयः — The Determination of Value through the Cow
Nahuṣa–Cyavana Episode
ज्यायांसमपि शीलेन विहीनं नैव पूजयेत् । अपि शूद्रं च धर्मज्ञं सदवृत्तमभिपूजयेत्
bhīṣma uvāca | jyāyāṁsam api śīlena vihīnaṁ naiva pūjayet | api śūdraṁ ca dharmajñaṁ sadavṛttam abhipūjayet |
بھیشم نے کہا—اگر کوئی شخص سماجی طور پر بلند بھی ہو مگر اچھے کردار سے خالی ہو تو اس کی تعظیم نہ کی جائے؛ اور اگر کوئی شودر بھی ہو مگر دھرم کو جاننے والا اور نیک سیرت ہو تو اسے خاص احترام دیا جائے۔
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Honor should be based on character (śīla) and knowledge of dharma, not merely on birth or social rank. A high-born person lacking good conduct is not worthy of respect, while a Shudra who is dharma-knowing and well-behaved deserves special honor.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he lays down a norm for social and ethical judgment: reverence is to be given according to virtue and righteous conduct rather than inherited status.