Shloka 8
गोशकृन्माहात्म्य-प्रश्नः (On the Merit of Cow-Dung and the Abode of Śrī) / Inquiry into the Sanctity of Cow-Dung
गावो यज्ञस्य हि फल गोषु यज्ञा: प्रतिष्ठिता: । गावो भविष्यं भूतं च गोषु यज्ञा: प्रतिष्ठिता:
gāvo yajñasya hi phalaṁ goṣu yajñāḥ pratiṣṭhitāḥ | gāvo bhaviṣyaṁ bhūtaṁ ca goṣu yajñāḥ pratiṣṭhitāḥ ||
Bhishma said: “Cows are indeed the givers of the fruit of sacrifice; in cows the sacrifices find their firm foundation. Cows embody both what has been and what is yet to come; in cows the sacrifices are established—meaning that the efficacy and continuity of yajña ultimately depend upon them.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that cows are foundational to yajña and its fruits: they sustain ritual life materially (milk, ghee, and agrarian support) and symbolically (continuity of dharma across past and future). Hence, protecting and honoring cows is presented as an ethical duty tied to the maintenance of sacrificial and social order.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma through teachings on gifts, vows, and righteous conduct. Here he emphasizes the centrality of cows to sacrificial practice and to the enduring welfare of society, framing go-sevā/go-rakṣā as a dharmic support of yajña.