Shloka 24
Go-mahātmyam: Pavitrāṇāṃ Pavitraṃ
Cows and Ghee as Supreme Purifiers
अमृतेनावसिक्तस्त्वं नोच्छिष्टं विद्यते गवाम् । यथा हामृतमादाय सोमो विस्यन्दते पुन:
amṛtenāvasiktas tvaṃ nocchiṣṭaṃ vidyate gavām | yathā hāmṛtam ādāya somo visyandate punaḥ ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Tu as été aspergé d’amṛta, le breuvage d’immortalité ; dès lors, chez les vaches il n’est point de “reste” impur. Ainsi Soma, après avoir reçu l’ambroisie, s’écoule de nouveau.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts the exceptional ritual purity and sanctity of cows: because they are regarded as consecrated with amṛta, what would normally be considered ‘ucchiṣṭa’ (impure remnants) does not apply to them. The Soma analogy reinforces the idea of a sacred substance that remains pure and life-giving even as it is ‘taken’ and then ‘flows’ again.
Bhīṣma is explaining a dharma principle connected with cows and purity rules. He justifies why ordinary impurity concepts like ‘leftovers’ are not attributed to cows, using a Vedic image: Soma, associated with amṛta, continues to stream forth even after being received—symbolizing inexhaustible sacred purity.