Shloka 21

Go-dāna-stuti and Ghṛta-Japa

Praise of cow-gift and ghee-centered recitation

Devanagari script

“जो इच्छानुसार दूध देनेवाली धेनुका दान करता है

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | yo icchānusāraṃ dugdha-dāyinīṃ dhenukāṃ dānaṃ karoti sa mānaḥ sarvān pārthiva-bhogān ekataḥ eva dānaṃ karoti | yadā ekasyā go-dānasya evaṃ māhātmyaṃ tadā havya-kavya-rāśibhiḥ suśobhitā bahvyaḥ gāvaḥ yadi vidhi-pūrvakaṃ dīyante tarhi kīdṛśaṃ mahā-phalaṃ syāt | yuvā-balikānāṃ dānaṃ tābhyaḥ api gābhyaḥ adhikaṃ puṇya-dāyakam iti |

Translation

Bhishma berkata: “Barangsiapa mendanakan seekor sapi perah yang memberi susu sesuai kehendak, ia seakan-akan mendanakan seluruh kenikmatan duniawi sekaligus. Jika demikian agungnya pahala memberi satu sapi, betapa lebih besar buahnya bila banyak sapi—dihiasi persembahan yang layak bagi para dewa dan leluhur—diberikan menurut tata cara. Dan dana berupa banteng-banteng muda dikatakan lebih berjasa lagi daripada dana sapi-sapi itu.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'bhīṣma uvāca', 'definition': 'Bhishma said'}, {'term': 'icchānusāram', 'definition': 'according to one’s wish

• as desired'}, {'term': 'dugdha-dāyinī', 'definition': 'milk-giving

• yielding milk'}, {'term': 'dhenukā / dhenu', 'definition': 'a milch-cow'}, {'term': 'dāna', 'definition': 'gift

• charitable giving'}, {'term': 'pārthiva-bhoga', 'definition': 'earthly enjoyments

• worldly pleasures'}, {'term': 'go-dāna', 'definition': 'gift of a cow'}, {'term': 'māhātmya', 'definition': 'greatness

• spiritual efficacy'}, {'term': 'havya', 'definition': 'offerings meant for the gods (devas)'}, {'term': 'kavya', 'definition': 'offerings meant for the ancestors (pitṛs), śrāddha-related'}, {'term': 'vidhi-pūrvakam', 'definition': 'in accordance with prescribed rite

• properly'}, {'term': 'mahā-phala', 'definition': 'great fruit

• great result (merit)'}, {'term': 'yuvā-bali(ka)', 'definition': 'young, strong (bull/ox)

• youthful draft animal'}, {'term': 'puṇya-dāyaka', 'definition': 'merit-bestowing

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• cow (dhenu)
• many cows
• young bulls/oxen
• havya (offerings to gods)
• kavya (offerings to ancestors)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma teaches that properly performed charity (dāna), especially go-dāna, carries immense religious merit: giving a milk-yielding cow is equated with giving worldly enjoyments, and gifting many cows with due ritual offerings multiplies the fruit; gifting young bulls is praised as even more meritorious.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Anushasana Parva’s instruction section, Bhishma continues advising on dharma and gifts. Here he extols the greatness of cow-gifting and related ritual propriety (havya-kavya associations), comparing the merit of single versus multiple gifts and adding the special praise of donating young bulls.