Shloka 4
अन्नदान-प्रशंसा (Praise of the Gift of Food) | Annadāna-Praśaṃsā
दत्तं मन्येत यद् दत्त्वा तद् दान श्रेष्ठमुच्यते । दत्तं दातारमन्वेति यद् दानं भरतर्षभ
dattam manyeta yad dattvā tad dānaṃ śreṣṭham ucyate | dattaṃ dātāram anveti yad dānaṃ bharatarṣabha ||
毗湿摩说道：“婆罗多族中的雄牛啊！那种布施最为殊胜——施与之后，施者心中自知：‘确已真施。’而且此施一经施出，仍随施者而行；其功德与果报常伴其身。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The highest form of giving is that which is given with full inner assent—without regret, calculation, or lingering sense of loss. Such a gift ‘follows’ the giver, meaning its ethical and karmic fruit accompanies the donor beyond the moment of giving.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma, especially duties like charity. Here he defines what makes a gift truly excellent: the giver’s wholehearted intention and the enduring merit that results.