Shloka 16
Suvarṇa-janma and Dakṣiṇā-Māhātmya
Origin and Supremacy of Gold as Ritual Fee
गुणवचनसमुच्चयैकदेशो नृवर मयैष गवां प्रकीर्तितस्ते । न च परमिह दानमस्ति गोभ्यो भवति न चापि परायणं तथान्यत्
guṇavacanasamuccayaikadeśo nṛvara mayaiva eṣa gavāṁ prakīrtitas te | na ca param iha dānam asti gobhyo bhavati na cāpi parāyaṇaṁ tathā anyat ||
বসিষ্ঠ ক’লে— হে নৰশ্ৰেষ্ঠ! গাইৰ গুণবচনৰ সংকলনৰ পৰা মই তোমাক কেৱল এটা সৰু অংশহে ক’লোঁ—মাত্ৰ দিশা-দৰ্শন। এই লোকত গোদানতকৈ শ্ৰেষ্ঠ দান নাই, আৰু সিহঁতৰ তুল্য আন কোনো আশ্ৰয়ো নাই।
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates go-dāna (the gifting of cows) as the highest form of charity and presents cows as an unmatched source of support/refuge, framing this as a dharmic and ethically superior act.
Vasiṣṭha addresses a king, explaining that he has only offered a brief sample of the traditional praises of cows, and then emphasizes their exceptional status by declaring cow-gifting the greatest donation and cows an incomparable refuge.