Shloka 16
Go-dāna-stuti and Ghṛta-Japa
Praise of cow-gift and ghee-centered recitation
नाम संकीर्तयेत् तस्या यथासंख्योत्तरं स वै । “जो गौके निष्क्रयरूपसे उसका मूल्य
nāma saṅkīrtayet tasyā yathāsaṅkhyottaraṃ sa vai |
Bhīṣma said: “He should pronounce the prescribed name of that (substitute cow-gift) in the proper order, according to the stated sequence.” In context, the instruction concerns dharmic correctness in gifting: even when one gives the cow’s redemption-value (price), or cloth, or gold in place of an actual cow, the donor should formally designate the gift with the appropriate ‘cow-name’ at the time of resolve (saṅkalpa), so that the act is treated as a proper go-dāna in intention and ritual form.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That charitable giving should be performed with correct intention and formal declaration: even when substituting a cow with its value, cloth, or gold, one should ritually name the gift in the proper sequence so it is treated as a valid go-dāna in dharmic terms.
Bhīṣma is instructing (as a dharma-teacher) on the procedure for ‘cow-gift redemption’—how to make a substitute donation and how to pronounce the appropriate designated names during the saṅkalpa so the recipient may accept it as a proper cow-gift.