Shloka 8
गोप्रदानात् तारयते सप्त पूर्वास्तथा परान् | सुवर्ण दक्षिणां कृत्वा तावदद्विगुणमुच्यते
gopradānāt tārayate sapta pūrvās tathā parān | suvarṇa-dakṣiṇāṁ kṛtvā tāvad adviguṇam ucyate ||
Pitāmaha said: “By the gift of a cow, a man is said to deliver seven generations of his forefathers and likewise those who come after. If one adds a gold honorarium (dakṣiṇā) to that gift, the merit is declared to be twice as much.”
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the dharmic value of dāna: gifting a cow is praised as a powerful act of merit benefiting both ancestors and descendants, and adding a gold dakṣiṇā is said to increase that merit twofold.
Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha), in his instruction on dharma, explains to his listener the spiritual efficacy of specific charitable gifts—especially go-dāna—and how accompanying dakṣiṇā (gold) is traditionally held to amplify the fruit of the donation.