Shloka 24
Go-dāna-stuti and Ghṛta-Japa
Praise of cow-gift and ghee-centered recitation
बार्हस्पत्यं वाक्यमेतन्निशम्य ये राजानो गोप्रदानानि दत्त्वा । लोकान _प्राप्ता: पुण्यशीला: प्रवृत्ता- स्तान् मे राजन् कीर्त्यमानान् निबोध
bārhaspatyaṁ vākyam etan niśamya ye rājāno gopradānāni dattvā | lokān prāptāḥ puṇyaśīlāḥ pravṛttās tān me rājan kīrtyamānān nibodha ||
Bhishma dit : «Ô roi, après avoir entendu cet enseignement de Bṛhaspati, ces souverains qui, ayant fait don de vaches, atteignirent des mondes d’excellence par le mérite de cet acte et devinrent inébranlables dans la vertu—portés vers la conduite juste—écoute maintenant tandis que j’énumère leurs noms.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma emphasizes the dharmic power of go-dāna (gift of cows) as taught by Bṛhaspati: such charity cultivates lasting virtue and yields exalted posthumous realms. The verse frames generosity as both ethical formation (puṇya-śīla, pravṛtta in satkarma) and spiritual consequence (attaining higher lokas).
Bhishma, instructing the king (Yudhiṣṭhira in context), transitions from citing Bṛhaspati’s counsel to promising an illustrative catalogue: he will now name the kings who performed cow-gifts and, through that merit, attained superior worlds and became firmly devoted to righteous action.