Shloka 38
Phala of Vrata, Niyama, Svādhyāya, Dama, Satya, Brahmacarya, and Service (व्रत-नियम-स्वाध्याय-दम-सत्य-ब्रह्मचर्य-शुश्रूषा-फलप्रश्नः)
नाचिकेत कहता है--वैवस्वत यमकी बात सुनकर मैंने पुनः उनसे पूछा--“भगवन्! यदि अभाववश गोदान न किया जा सके तो गोदान करनेवालोंको ही मिलनेवाले लोकोंमें मनुष्य कैसे जा सकता है?” ।। ततोडब्रवीद् यमो धीमान् गोप्रदानपरां गतिम् । गोप्रदानानुकल्पं तु गामृते सन्ति गोप्रदा:,तदनन्तर बुद्धिमान् यमराजने गोदानसम्बन्धी गति तथा गोदानके समान फल देनेवाले दानका वर्णन किया, जिसके अनुसार बिना गायके भी लोग गोदान करनेवाले हो सकते हैं?
Nāciketa uvāca—Vaivasvata-Yamasya vākyam śrutvā punar aham enam apṛccham: “Bhagavan! yadi abhāvavaśād go-dānaṁ na kartum śakyate, tarhi go-dāna-kartṝṇāṁ ye lokāḥ, teṣu manuṣyaḥ kathaṁ gacchet?” || tato ’bravīd Yamo dhīmān go-pradāna-parāṁ gatim | go-pradānānukalpaṁ tu gāmṛte santi go-pradāḥ ||
Naciketa said: After hearing the words of Vaivasvata Yama, I questioned him again: “Revered Lord, if—due to lack of means—a person cannot perform the gift of a cow, how can he still reach those worlds that are attained by those who give cows?” Then the wise Yama explained the supreme course of merit connected with cow-gifting, and also described an equivalent form of giving—by which, even without an actual cow, people may become ‘givers of cows’ through a substitute gift that yields the same fruit.
नाचिकेत उवाच
Educational Q&A
Yama teaches that the merit of an ideal gift (like cow-donation) can be approached through a sanctioned equivalent (anukalpa) when one lacks the means—so dharma remains practicable without excluding the poor.
Naciketa asks Yama how someone unable to give a cow can still attain the same meritorious realms as cow-givers. Yama responds by outlining the ‘cow-gift path’ and introducing substitute gifts that confer comparable spiritual results.