Shloka 17
Jñāna-yoga and Karma-phala: Manu–Bṛhaspati on Akṣara and the Limits of Mantra
नेक्षेतादित्यमुद्यन्तं न च नग्नां परस्त्रियम् । मैथुनं सततं धर्म्य गुद्दो चैव समाचरेत्
nekṣetādityam udyantaṁ na ca nagnāṁ parastriyam | maithunaṁ satataṁ dharmyaṁ ṛtukāle svadārayā sahaikānte samācaret ||
毗湿摩说道：不可凝视初升之日；亦不可将目光投向他人之妻在裸露之时。男女交合当依正法而行——在适当的时节——且唯与己妻，于私密之处。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches disciplined conduct for a householder: restrain the senses (especially sight), avoid improper or lustful looking, and treat sexual activity as a dharmic act—limited to one’s lawful spouse, at the appropriate time, and in privacy.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he gives practical rules of personal restraint and household ethics, emphasizing modesty, propriety, and regulated marital life.