Shloka 51
गोप्रदानगुणाः तथा कपिलागोविधानम्
Merits of Cow-Gift and the Origin-Account of Kapilā Cows
मम लोके सुरै: सार्थ लोके यत्रापि चेच्छति
mama loke suraiḥ sārthaṃ loke yatrāpi cecchati | śatakrato! yo manuṣya uparyukta-vidhinā vane vasann gāṃ anusarati tathā niḥspṛhaḥ saṃyamī ca pavitraś ca tṛṇa-patra-gomaya-bhakṣaṇena jīvanaṃ nayati, sa manasi kāmanā-śūnye sati mama loke devaiḥ saha ānandena nivāsam āpnoti | athavā yatra yatra icchati tatra tatra lokān gacchati ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Dans mon royaume, avec les dieux, il demeure dans la joie. Ô Śatakratu (Indra), l’homme qui, suivant l’observance énoncée, vit en forêt, suit les vaches et demeure sans désir, maître de lui et pur—se nourrissant d’herbe, de feuilles et de bouse de vache—lorsque son esprit est délivré de toute convoitise, atteint mon monde et y vit heureux avec les divinités. Ou bien, où qu’il le veuille, vers ces mondes-là il peut aller.»
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
Austerity joined with purity, self-restraint, and freedom from desire—especially expressed through devoted service to cows and forest-discipline—yields exalted post-mortem attainments: joyful residence among the gods or access to desired higher realms.
Bhīṣma, speaking as Pitāmaha, addresses Indra (Śatakratu) while describing the फल (result) of a specific cow-centered ascetic vow: living in the forest, following cows, and subsisting on simple, austere fare. He states the spiritual reward in terms of reaching ‘his world’ with the gods or traveling to chosen worlds.