Shloka 323
गोप्रदानगुणाः तथा कपिलागोविधानम्
Merits of Cow-Gift and the Origin-Account of Kapilā Cows
तावत् प्रदानात् स गवां फलमाप्रोति शाश्वतम् । शतक्रतो! जो एक समय भोजन करके दूसरे समयके बचाये हुए भोजनसे गाय खरीदकर उसका दान करता है
tāvat pradānāt sa gavāṁ phalam āpnoti śāśvatam | śatakrato!
قال بهيشما: يا شتاكرتو (إندرا)، إن التصدّق بالأبقار يورث المرء ثوابًا خالدًا. وحتى من أكل مرةً واحدة، ثم اشترى بقرةً بما ادّخره من طعام الوجبة التالية وتصدّق بها، نال برًّا لا يفنى، يعادل هبة عددٍ من الأبقار بقدر ما على تلك البقرة من شعر.
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that go-dāna (donating a cow) yields enduring, imperishable merit, and that sincere charity arising from personal restraint—saving one’s own food to enable a gift—multiplies the spiritual reward.
Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha), in his discourse on dharma and gifts, addresses Indra (Śatakratu) and praises the extraordinary, lasting fruit of donating cows, including the case of a donor who purchases a cow through self-denial and then gives it away.