Āśrama-dharma: Duties of the Four Life-Stages (आश्रमधर्मः)
कुर्वीतापत्यसंतानमथो दद्याद् यजेत च । संविभज्य च भोक्तव्यं धन॑ सद्धिरितीर्यते
kurvītāpatyasantānam atho dadyād yajeta ca | saṁvibhajya ca bhoktavyaṁ dhanaṁ saddhir itīryate ||
毗湿摩说道:“当生子嗣以续宗族,当行布施,当修祭祀(yajña)。贤者教诲:财富唯当先行分施、正当分配于他人之后,方可自享。”
भीष्म उवाच
The verse summarizes key duties of a householder: sustain family continuity (offspring/lineage), practice generosity (dāna), perform sacrificial/religious obligations (yajña), and treat wealth as legitimate to enjoy only when it is shared—i.e., used with distribution and social responsibility.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he states a normative rule taught by the virtuous: wealth should not be hoarded for private enjoyment but should be apportioned and shared, alongside fulfilling family and ritual duties.