Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 37
गोप्रदानं प्रकर्तव्यं तस्माच्चैव विशेषतः । मृत्युकालेऽत्र संप्राप्ते य इच्छेद्गतिमात्मनः
gopradānaṃ prakartavyaṃ tasmāccaiva viśeṣataḥ | mṛtyukāle'tra saṃprāpte ya icchedgatimātmanaḥ
C’est pourquoi le don d’une vache doit assurément être accompli—et tout particulièrement—par celui qui, lorsque l’heure de la mort survient, désire pour soi un passage béni.
Skanda (deduced from Nāgara-khaṇḍa tīrtha-māhātmya narrative style)
Tirtha: Vaitaraṇī (as doctrinal reference)
Type: sangam
Scene: A teacher-sage figure instructs householders: a cow adorned for donation stands beside a ritual fire; the scene hints at mortality with a setting sun or a faint silhouette of Yama’s realm in the distance.
FAQs
Charity—especially go-dāna—is praised as a powerful support for attaining a good course after death.
This verse sits within a Tīrthamāhātmya section; the snippet emphasizes dharmic acts connected to tīrtha-context rather than naming a single site in the verse itself.
Go-pradāna (cow donation) is prescribed as a special act for one seeking auspicious gati at death.
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