Varaha Purana 105.13: Adhyaya 105, Shloka 13

Ritual Procedure for the Gift of the Milk-Cow

Kṣīradhenu

Uttara Bhāga · Dāna-māhātmya (Cow-gift commendation)

Devanagari script

दत्त्वा धेनुं महाराज शृणु तस्यापि यत्फलम् ॥ षष्टिवर्षसहस्रं तु इन्द्रलोके महीयते

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 105.13

Transliteration

datvā dhenuṁ mahārāja śṛṇu tasyāpi yatphalam || ṣaṣṭivarṣasahasraṁ tu indraloke mahīyate

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

महाराज, जब कोई गाय दान करता है तो उसका रिज़ल्ट सुनो। सौ-साठ हज़ार साल तक इंद्र के लोक में उसकी बड़ाई होती है।

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Word by Word

• datvā: having given
• Type: Verb
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वा/ल्यप्), pūrvakāla-kriyā (prior action)
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Root: √dā (धातु)

• dhenum: a cow
• Type: Noun
• Form: Strīliṅga (fem), Dvitīyā vibhakti (2nd/द्वितीया), Ekavacana (singular)
• Role: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Root: dhenu (प्रातिपदिक)

• mahārāja: O great king
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga (masc), Sambodhana (vocative/सम्बोधन), Ekavacana (singular); karmadhāraya: mahān rājā
• Role: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Address)
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + rāja (प्रातिपदिक)

• śṛṇu: hear
• Type: Verb
• Form: Loṭ lakāra (imperative/लोट्), Madhyama puruṣa (2nd/मध्यम), Ekavacana (singular), Parasmaipada
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √śru (धातु)

• tasya: of that (gift/act)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga/napuṁsaka (contextual), Ṣaṣṭhī vibhakti (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana (singular)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• api: also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya; particle (समुच्चय/अपि = also/even)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Particle)
• Root: api (अव्यय)

• yat: which
• Type: Adjective
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग (neut), Prathamā/Dvitīyā vibhakti (1st/2nd), Ekavacana (singular); correlatives with implied 'tat'
• Role: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)

• phalam: fruit/result
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग (neut), Prathamā/Dvitīyā vibhakti (1st/2nd), Ekavacana (singular)
• Role: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Root: phala (प्रातिपदिक)

• ṣaṣṭivarṣasahasram: for a thousand sixty-year periods (i.e., 60,000 years)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Napuṁsakalिङ्ग (neut), Prathamā/Dvitīyā vibhakti (1st/2nd), Ekavacana (singular); tatpuruṣa: ṣaṣṭi-varṣāṇāṁ sahasram = 'a thousand (of) sixty years'
• Role: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (काल-अधिकरण/Time span)
• Root: ṣaṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + varṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)

• tu: indeed/but
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: Avyaya; emphatic/contrast particle (तु)
• Role: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Particle)
• Root: tu (अव्यय)

• indraloke: in Indra’s world (Svarga)
• Type: Noun
• Form: Puṁliṅga (masc), Saptamī vibhakti (7th/सप्तमी), Ekavacana (singular); tatpuruṣa: indrasya lokaḥ
• Role: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Location)
• Root: indra (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)

• mahīyate: is honored/exalted
• Type: Verb
• Form: Laṭ lakāra (present/लट्), Prathama puruṣa (3rd/प्रथम), Ekavacana (singular), Ātmanepada; karmaṇi-prayoga sense: 'is honored/glorified'
• Role: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Root: √mah (धातु)

Sandhi Notes

• tasyāpi → tasya + api
• yatphalam → yat + phalam
• ṣaṣṭi+varṣa+sahasram → ṣaṣṭivarṣasahasram

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Adbhuta rasaSetting: Celestial realm

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Karma-phala (ethical causality)

Subjects

EthicsCosmologyRitual Merit

Dharma

Tags

• Purāṇic Literature
• Dāna (Gift traditions)
• Indraloka (Heaven motifs)
• Kingship discourse

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It documents the prominence of cattle-gifts (dhenudāna) in South Asian ethical-ritual systems, tying social generosity to cosmological reward narratives.

Which geographic location is identified?

No earthly location is specified; the verse references Indraloka as a cosmological realm.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

The text commends charitable giving—specifically the gifting of a cow—as a meritorious act with long-lasting consequences in the moral imagination of the tradition.