Shloka 8
गोमहात्म्य-प्रश्नोत्तरम्
Saudāsa–Vasiṣṭha on the Purifying Power of Cows
गोप्रदानात् तारयते सप्त पूर्वास्तथा परान् | सुवर्ण दक्षिणां कृत्वा तावदद्विगुणमुच्यते
gopradānāt tārayate sapta pūrvās tathā parān | suvarṇa-dakṣiṇāṁ kṛtvā tāvad adviguṇam ucyate ||
Pitāmaha dit : «Par le don d’une vache, on dit qu’un homme délivre sept générations de ses ancêtres, et de même celles qui viendront après. S’il ajoute à ce don une dakṣiṇā d’or, le mérite en est proclamé double.»
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.