Shloka 4
गोशकृन्माहात्म्य-प्रश्नः (On the Merit of Cow-Dung and the Abode of Śrī) / Inquiry into the Sanctity of Cow-Dung
भीष्म उवाच तस्मै प्रोवाच वचन प्रणताय हित॑ तदा । गवामुपनिषद्धिद्वान् नमस्कृत्य गवां शुचि:
bhīṣma uvāca: tasmai provāca vacanaṁ praṇatāya hitaṁ tadā | gavām upaniṣad-dhīdvān namaskṛtya gavāṁ śuciḥ ||
Bhishma dit : Alors, devant ce roi prosterné dans une humble soumission, le sage pur Vasiṣṭha—versé dans la doctrine secrète concernant les vaches (la « Gavām Upaniṣad »)—offrit d’abord de respectueuses salutations aux vaches, puis se mit à parler en des termes destinés au bien du roi.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical frame for dharma-instruction: true teaching is given for the listener’s welfare (hita) and is properly received through humility (praṇati). It also signals reverence toward sacred beings (here, cows) as a prerequisite for transmitting ‘secret’ or profound dharmic knowledge.
Bhishma narrates that King Saudāsa has approached in a submissive posture. The sage Vasiṣṭha, described as pure and learned in the ‘Gavām Upaniṣad,’ first salutes the cows and then begins his beneficial discourse to the king.