Shloka 26
Go-dāna-stuti and Ghṛta-Japa
Praise of cow-gift and ghee-centered recitation
पुरूरवो भरतश्षक्रवर्ती यस्यान्ववाये भरता: सर्व एव | तथा वीरो दाशरथिक्षु रामो ये चाप्यन्ये विश्रुता: कीर्तिमन्त:
bhīṣma uvāca |
purūravo bharataś cakravartī yasyānvavāye bharatāḥ sarva eva |
tathā vīro dāśarathikṣu rāmo ye cāpy anye viśrutāḥ kīrtimantaḥ ||
Bhishma dit : «Purūravas ; Bharata, le monarque universel, dans la lignée duquel tous les rois vinrent à être appelés “Bhārata” ; de même le héros Rāma, fils de Daśaratha ; et d’autres souverains fameux par leur renom : ces rois, connaisseurs de la loi, atteignirent le ciel par le mérite du don de vaches.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That exemplary kings, grounded in dharma, gain lasting merit through dāna—especially go-dāna—so generosity is presented as a defining ethical duty of righteous rulership and a means to attain higher worlds.
Bhishma is instructing Yudhishthira by listing renowned monarchs (Pururavas, Bharata, Rama, and other famous kings) as precedents who attained heaven through the gift of cows, using their fame to validate the practice as authoritative dharma.