Anushasana Parva Adhyaya 74 Shloka 50 - Mahabharata | German | Vedapath

Vyasa

Shloka 50

Phala of Vrata, Niyama, Svādhyāya, Dama, Satya, Brahmacarya, and Service (व्रत-नियम-स्वाध्याय-दम-सत्य-ब्रह्मचर्य-शुश्रूषा-फलप्रश्नः)

Devanagari script

देवव्रती स्याद्‌ वृषभप्रदानै- वेंदावाप्तिगोयुगस्य प्रदाने । तीर्थावाप्तिगों प्रयुक्तप्रदाने पापोत्सर्ग: कपिलाया: प्रदाने

Transliteration

nāciketa uvāca | devavratī syād vṛṣabhapradānaiḥ vedāvāptir goyugasya pradāne | tīrthāvāptir gāṃ prayuktapradāne pāpotsargaḥ kapilāyāḥ pradāne ||

Translation

Naciketa sprach: „Wer einen Stier verschenkt, wird dem Dienst an den Göttern zugewandt. Wer ein Paar Stiere verschenkt, erlangt Zugang zur vedischen Erkenntnis. Wer einen Wagen verschenkt, der mit eben diesen Stieren angespannt ist, gewinnt das Verdienst des Besuchs heiliger Pilgerstätten. Und wer eine kapilā-Kuh (falb, gelblich-braun) verschenkt, wirft die Sünden ab.“

Word by Word

देवव्रतीdevoted to the gods / one who has a divine vow

स्यात्would become / should be

वृषभप्रदानैःby (the) gifts of bulls

वेदावाप्तिःattainment of the Veda(s)

गोयुगस्यof a pair of oxen/cattle (a yoke-pair)

प्रदानेin/at the giving (upon donation)

तीर्थावाप्तिःattainment of (the fruit of) pilgrimage / holy places

गःa cow

प्रयुक्तप्रदानेupon giving (a cart/vehicle) yoked/used (with oxen)

पापोत्सर्गःabandonment/removal of sins

कपिलायाःof a tawny cow (kapilā)

प्रदानेupon donation

Speaker

नाचिकेत उवाच

Characters & Entities

Naciketa

bull (vṛṣabha)

pair of bulls (goyuga)

yoked cart/vehicle (implied by prayukta)

Veda

tīrtha (pilgrimage sites)

kapilā cow

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches a graded ethic of dāna: giving useful, life-supporting resources (cattle and what they enable) is a dharmic act that yields corresponding spiritual fruits—devotional orientation, access to sacred learning, pilgrimage-merit, and purification from sin.

What is happening in the narrative?

Naciketa is enumerating the specific merits (phala) associated with different bovine-related gifts—one bull, a pair of bulls, a yoked conveyance, and a kapilā cow—presenting them as authoritative guidance on charitable conduct within Anuśāsana Parva’s broader instruction on dharma.