Shloka 19
गोप्रदानगुणाः तथा कपिलागोविधानम्
Merits of Cow-Gift and the Origin-Account of Kapilā Cows
दायाद्याद् या: सम वै गावो न्यायपूर्वैरुपार्जिता: । प्रदद्यात् ता: प्रदातृणां सम्भवन्त्यपि च श्रुवा:,जो पैतृक-सम्पत्तिसे न्यायपूर्वक प्राप्त की हुई गौओंका दान करता है, ऐसे दाताओंके लिये वे गौएँ अक्षय फल देनेवाली हो जाती हैं
dāyādyād yāḥ sama-vā gāvo nyāya-pūrvair upārjitāḥ | pradadyāt tāḥ pradātṝṇāṃ sambhavanty api ca śruvāḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “If a man gives in charity those cows that have been rightfully obtained—such as one’s lawful share of inheritance—then for such donors those very cows become a source of enduring, unfailing merit, as is heard in sacred tradition.”
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
Charity yields lasting merit when the gift is made from wealth acquired by just and lawful means—especially one’s legitimate share of ancestral property; such properly obtained cows, when donated, become a source of inexhaustible spiritual fruit for the giver.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction on dharma (Anuśāsana Parva), he explains the ethical conditions that make gifts truly fruitful, emphasizing that donations—here, cows—should be made from rightfully obtained resources, such as a lawful inheritance share.