Shloka 104
Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha
नचाश्वमेधैर्बहुभि: फलं सममिदं तव । सक्तुप्रस्थेन विजितो ब्रह्मलोकस्त्वयाक्षय:,“तुमने जो यह दानजनित फल प्राप्त किया है, इसकी समता प्रचुर दक्षिणावाले बहुसंख्यक राजसूय और अनेक अभश्वमेध-यज्ञोंद्वारा भी नहीं हो सकती। तुमने सेरभर सत्तूका दान करके अक्षय ब्रह्मलोकको जीत लिया है
na cāśvamedhair bahubhiḥ phalaṃ samam idaṃ tava | saktuprasthena vijito brahmalokas tvayākṣayaḥ ||
The father-in-law said: “The merit you have gained from this act of giving cannot be matched even by performing many Aśvamedha sacrifices. By donating merely a prastha-measure of roasted barley flour (saktu), you have won for yourself the imperishable world of Brahmā. This shows that the ethical worth of a gift lies not in its magnitude but in the giver’s sincerity, need, and self-restraint.”
श्षशुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the moral and spiritual value of charity depends primarily on intention, sacrifice, and the giver’s circumstances—not on the external scale of the offering. A modest gift given with genuine self-denial can yield greater merit than grand rituals performed with wealth and display.
A father-in-law addresses the giver and praises the extraordinary fruit of a simple donation—only a prastha of saktu—declaring it superior to the merit of many Aśvamedha sacrifices. He concludes that this act has secured the giver an imperishable attainment, Brahmaloka.