Varaha Purana 112.73: Adhyaya 112, Shloka 73

Praise and Procedure of Donating the Two-Faced Kapilā Cow and the Golden Pot

Hema-kumbha

Pūrva Bhāga · Dāna-Dharma (Gift-giving ethics) and ritual economy

Devanagari script

प्रत्यक्षधेनुर्दातव्या सहिरण्या नृपोत्तम ॥ सर्वदा सर्वधेनूनां प्रदानं राजसत्तम ॥

Recitation with translationVaraha Purana 112.73

Transliteration

pratyakṣadhenur dātavyā sahiraṇyā nṛpottama || sarvadā sarvadhenūnāṃ pradānaṃ rājasattama ||

ITRANS transliteration

Translation

राजा, ज़िन्दा गाय देना चाहिए, उसके साथ सोना भी। गाय देने का काम बहुत बड़ा है, यह हमेशा चलता रहता है।

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Word by Word

• प्रत्यक्ष-धेनुः: a present/actual cow
• Type: Noun
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास: ‘प्रत्यक्षा धेनुः’ (a cow present/visible); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: कर्म (Karma/Object; to be given)
• Root: प्रत्यक्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + धेनु (प्रातिपदिक)

• दातव्या: to be given / should be given
• Type: Adjective
• Form: तव्यत्-प्रत्ययान्त (gerundive/obligatory); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘दातव्या’ = should be given
• Role: विधेय-विशेषण (Predicate adjective)
• Root: दा (धातु) + तव्यत् (कृदन्त)

• स-हिरण्या: together with gold
• Type: Adjective
• Form: बहुव्रीहि-समास: ‘हिरण्येन सह’ = accompanied by gold; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (धेनु-विशेषण)
• Role: कर्म-विशेषण (Qualifier of object)
• Root: स (अव्यय/उपसर्गार्थ ‘with’) + हिरण्य (प्रातिपदिक)

• नृप-उत्तम: O best of kings
• Type: Noun
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: सम्बोधन (Address)
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)

• सर्वदा: always
• Type: Indeclinable
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)
• Role: कालाधिकरण (Time adverbial)
• Root: सर्वदा (अव्यय)

• सर्व-धेनूनाम्: of all cows
• Type: Noun
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास: ‘सर्वाः धेनवः’; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन
• Role: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + धेनु (प्रातिपदिक)

• प्रदानम्: the giving/donation
• Type: Noun
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: कर्ता/वाक्यविषय (Topic/Subject-noun)
• Root: प्रदान (प्रातिपदिक; प्र-दा धातोः भाव/कर्मणि घञ्)

• राज-सत्तम: O best of kings
• Type: Noun
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन
• Role: सम्बोधन (Address)
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक) + सत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)

Sandhi Notes

• प्रत्यक्षधेनुः = प्रत्यक्ष + धेनुः
• सहिरण्या = स + हिरण्या (बहुव्रीहि)
• नृपोत्तम = नृप + उत्तम
• सर्वधेनूनाम् = सर्व + धेनूनाम्
• राजसत्तम = राज + सत्तम

Speaker and setting

Shanta and Vira rasa

Speaker

Varāha

The teaching

Kind of teaching

Dharma-ethics (dāna as sustaining social-cosmic order)

Subjects

EthicsRitual EconomyMaterial Culture

Core idea

Material generosity—especially go-dāna—functions as a stabilizer of dharma and a purifier of the giver.

In practice

Prioritize living, welfare-supporting gifts (cow with upkeep/means), and make charity habitual rather than occasional.

The Varaha avatara

With the Earth

Instructional address within the Varāha–Bhū dialogue frame; Varāha teaches dharmic gifting rather than enacting physical rescue.

Dharma

Cross references

Tags

• Classical Literature
• Purāṇic Studies
• Vaiṣṇavism
• Dāna (Gift traditions)

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It documents a normative ideal of charitable giving in which livestock and precious metals function as high-status donations, reflecting agrarian and courtly economies.

Which geographic location is identified?

No geographic site is named; the verse concerns prescriptive dāna practice rather than pilgrimage geography.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

To give tangible, living gifts (not merely symbolic substitutes), and to treat charitable giving as a sustained ethical discipline.