Shloka 11
Suvarṇa-janma and Dakṣiṇā-Māhātmya
Origin and Supremacy of Gold as Ritual Fee
धेनुं सवत्सां कपिलां भूरिश्गीं कांस्योपदोहां वसनोत्तरीयाम् । प्रदाय तां गाहति दुर्विगाह्ां याम्यां सभां वीतभयो मनुष्य:
dhenuṁ savatsāṁ kapilāṁ bhūriśṛṅgīṁ kāṁsyopadohāṁ vasanottarīyām | pradāya tāṁ gāhati durvigāhāṁ yāmyāṁ sabhāṁ vītabhayo manuṣyaḥ ||
Vasiṣṭha dit : Celui qui donne à un brāhmaṇa une vache kapilā (fauve) avec son veau—aux grandes cornes, munie d’un récipient de bronze pour la traite et couverte d’un tissu—entre sans crainte dans l’assemblée de Yama, si difficile à pénétrer.
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that properly performed dāna—here, gifting an auspicious cow with calf and necessary accessories to a brāhmaṇa—has strong dharmic merit that removes fear at Yama’s judgment, symbolizing moral confidence rooted in generosity.
Vasiṣṭha describes the fruit (phala) of a specific charitable act: after donating a kapilā cow (with calf, cloth covering, and a bronze milking vessel), the donor is said to enter Yama’s difficult court without fear, implying favorable reception in the afterlife due to dharma.