Shloka 9
Putra-Bheda: Kṣetraja, Kṛtaka, Apasada, and Saṃskāra Determinations (पुत्रभेद-निर्णयः)
ईर्षवो मानकामाश्च चण्डाश्न सुहृदो5बुधा: । स्त्रियस्तु मानमर्हन्ति ता मानयत मानवा:
īrṣyavo mānakāmāś ca caṇḍāś ca suhṛdo 'budhāḥ | striyas tu mānam arhanti tā mānayata mānavāḥ ||
Bhīṣma nói: “Phụ nữ có thể ghen tuông, ham danh dự, dễ nổi giận, thân tình như bạn hữu, và nhiều khi đơn sơ chân chất. Nhưng phụ nữ vẫn đáng được tôn kính. Vì vậy, hỡi loài người, hãy kính trọng họ.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even if women (like all people) may display faults such as jealousy or quick temper, they are still ‘mānam arhanti’—worthy of honor. The verse frames respect for women as a moral duty that upholds dharma and social harmony.
In Anushasana Parva, Bhishma is instructing Yudhishthira on dharma and proper conduct. Here he gives a direct injunction to men to honor women, describing certain perceived traits and then concluding with the ethical imperative of respect.