Shloka 11
Suvarṇa-janma and Dakṣiṇā-Māhātmya
Origin and Supremacy of Gold as Ritual Fee
धेनुं सवत्सां कपिलां भूरिश्गीं कांस्योपदोहां वसनोत्तरीयाम् । प्रदाय तां गाहति दुर्विगाह्ां याम्यां सभां वीतभयो मनुष्य:
dhenuṁ savatsāṁ kapilāṁ bhūriśṛṅgīṁ kāṁsyopadohāṁ vasanottarīyām | pradāya tāṁ gāhati durvigāhāṁ yāmyāṁ sabhāṁ vītabhayo manuṣyaḥ ||
Dijo Vasiṣṭha: Quien dona a un brāhmaṇa una vaca kapilā (de tono leonado) con su ternero—de grandes cuernos, provista de un recipiente de bronce para el ordeño y cubierta con paño—entra sin temor en la difícil asamblea de Yama.
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that properly performed dāna—here, gifting an auspicious cow with calf and necessary accessories to a brāhmaṇa—has strong dharmic merit that removes fear at Yama’s judgment, symbolizing moral confidence rooted in generosity.
Vasiṣṭha describes the fruit (phala) of a specific charitable act: after donating a kapilā cow (with calf, cloth covering, and a bronze milking vessel), the donor is said to enter Yama’s difficult court without fear, implying favorable reception in the afterlife due to dharma.