Mahabharata · Chapter 13.12
yathaiva te namaskāryāḥ proktāḥ śakreṇa mānada /
etanme sarvamācakṣva yebhyaḥ spṛhayase nṛpaḥ //
uttamāpadgatasyāpi yatra te vartate manaḥ /
manuṣyaloke sarvasminyadamutreha cāpyuta //
bhīṣma uvāca /
spṛhayāmi dvijātibhyo yeṣāṃ brahma paraṃ dhanam /
yeṣāṃ sampratyayaḥ svargastapaḥsvādhyāyasādhanam //
yeṣāṃ bālāśca vṛddhāśca pitṛpaitāmahīṃ dhuram /
udvahanti na sīdanti tebhyo vai spṛhayāmyaham //
vidyāsvabhivinītānāṃ dāntānāṃ mṛdubhāṣiṇām /
śrutavṛttopapannānāṃ sadā'kṣaravidāṃ satām //
saṃsatsu vadatāṃ tāta haṃsānāmiva saṅghaśaḥ /
maṅgalyarūpā rucirā divyajīmūtaniḥsvanāḥ //
samyaguccaritā vācaḥ śrūyante hi yudhiṣṭhira /
śuśrūṣamāṇe nṛpatau pretya ceha sukhāvahāḥ //
ye cāpi teṣāṃ śrotāraḥ sadā sadasi sammatāḥ /
vijñānaguṇasampannāstebhyaśca spṛhayāmyaham //
susaṃskṛtāni prayatāḥ śucīni guṇavanti ca / dadatyannāni tṛptyarthaṃ brāhmaṇebhyo yudhiṣṭhara /
ye cāpi satataṃ rājaṃstebhyaśca spṛhayāmyaham //
śakyaṃ hyevāhave yoddhuṃ na dātumanasūyitum //
śūrā vīrāśca śataśaḥ santi loke yudhiṣṭhira /
teṣāṃ saṃkhyāyamānānāṃ dānaśūro viśiṣyate //
bhadraṃ tu janma samprāpya bhūyo brāhmaṇako bhavet / bandhumadhye kule jātaḥ sudurāpamavāpnuyāt //
dhanyaḥ syāṃ yadyahaṃ bhūyaḥ saumyabrāhmaṇakopi vā /
kule jāto dharmagatistapovidyāparāyaṇaḥ //
na me tvattaḥ priyataro loke'sminpāṇḍunandana /
tvattaścāpi priyatarā brāhmaṇā eva bhārata //
yathā mama priyatamāstvatto viprāḥ kurūttama /
tena satyena gaccheyaṃ lokānyatra sa śantanuḥ //
na me pitā priyataro brahmaṇebhyastathā'bhavat /
na me pituḥ pitā vā'pi ye cānye'pi suhṛñjanāḥ //
na hi me vṛjinaṃ kiñcidvidyate brāhmaṇeṣviha /
aṇu vā yadi vā sthūlaṃ vidyate sādhukarmasu //
karmaṇā manasā vā'pi vācā vā'pi parantapa /
yanme kṛtaṃ brāhmaṇebhyastenādya na tapāmyaham //
brahmaṇya iti māmāhustayā vācā'smi toṣitaḥ /
etadeva pavitrebhyaḥ sarvebhyaḥ paramaṃ smṛtam //
paśyāmi lokānamalāñśucīnbrāhmaṇatoṣaṇāt /
teṣu me tāta gantavyamahnāya ca cirāya ca //
yathā bhartrāśrayo dharmaḥ strīṇāṃ loke yudiṣṭhira /
sa devaḥ sā gatirnānyā kṣatriyasya tathā dvijāḥ //
kṣatriyaḥ śatavarṣī ca daśavarṣī dvijottamaḥ /
pitāputrau ca vijñeyau tayorhi brāhmaṇo guruḥ //
nārī tu patyabhāve vai devaraṃ kurute patim /
pṛthivī brāhmaṇālābhe kṣatriyaṃ kurute patim //
brāhmaṇānujñayā grāhyaṃ rājyaṃ ca sapurohitaiḥ / tadrakṣaṇena svargo'sya tatkopānnarako'kṣayaḥ //
putravaccaiva te rakṣyā upāsyā guruvacca te /
agnivaccopacāryā vai brāhmaṇāḥ kurusattam //
ṛjunsataḥ satyaśīlānsarvabhūtahite ratān /
āśīviṣāniva kruddhāndvijānparicaretsadā //
tejasastapasaścaiva nityaṃ bibhyedyudhiṣṭhira /
ubhe caite parityājye tejaścaiva tapastathā //
vyavasāyastayoḥ śīghramubhayoreva vidyate /
hanyuḥ kruddhā mahārāja brāhmaṇā ye tapasvinaḥ //
dūrato mātṛvatpūjyā vipradārāḥ surakṣayā /
akopanāparādhena bhūyo narakamaśnute //
bhūyaḥ syādubhayaṃ dattaṃ brāhmaṇādyadakopanāt /
kuryādubhayataḥ śeṣaṃ dattaśeṣaṃ na śeṣayet //
daṇḍapāṇiryathā goṣṭhaṃ pālo nityaṃ hi rakṣayet /
brāhmaṇeṣu sthitaṃ brahma kṣatriyaḥ paripālayet //
piteva putrānrakṣethā brāhmaṇānbrahmatejasaḥ /
gṛhe caiṣāmavekṣethāḥ kiṃsvidastīti jīvanam //
Original text: Mahābhārata (southern recension) · Edition: Śrīman Mahābhāratam, ed. T. R. Krishnacharya and T. R. Vyasacharya, Nirnaya Sagar Press, Bombay 1906–1910; e-text by SARIT (Shrinivasa Varakhedi and others) · SARIT: Search and Retrieval of Indic Texts · SARIT (e-text) via Internet Archive · CC BY-SA 3.0