Shloka 17
Haṃsa–Sādhya Saṃvāda: Satya, Dama, Kṣamā and the Discipline of Speech
भोजनाच्छादने चैव मात्रा पित्रा च संग्रहम् । स्वकृतेनाधिगच्छन्ति लोके नास्त्यकृतं पुरा
bhojanācchādane caiva mātrā pitrā ca saṅgraham | svakṛtenādhigacchanti loke nāsty akṛtaṃ purā ||
毗湿摩说道：“饮食衣服，以及父母所施的抚育与扶持——世人于此世所得，皆由自身之业行而致。无有一物不由行动而得；无有一得不先有其因。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma emphasizes karmic causality and personal responsibility: even basic sustenance and the support one receives are connected to one’s own prior actions; nothing comes without a cause or without being earned through karma.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct. Here he frames worldly welfare—such as food, clothing, and parental care—as outcomes governed by one’s deeds, reinforcing an ethical worldview of accountability.