Shloka 6
यावत्यो वर्षतो धारा यावत्यो दिवि तारका:,तावतीरददद गा वै शिबिरौशीनरो<थ्वरे । बरसते हुए मेघसे जितनी धाराएँ गिरती हैं, आकाशमें जितने नक्षत्र दिखायी देते हैं, गंगाके किनारे जितने बालूके कण हैं, सुमेरु पर्वतमें जितने स्थूल प्रस्तरखण्ड हैं तथा महासागरमें जितने रत्न और प्राणी निवास करते हैं, उतनी गौएँ उशीनरपुत्र शिबिने यज्ञमें ब्राह्मणोंको दी थीं
yāvatyo varṣato dhārā yāvatyo divi tārakāḥ | tāvatīr adadad gā vai śibir auśīnaro ’dhvare ||
Nārada said: “As many streams of rain fall from the raining clouds, and as many stars shine in the sky—so many cows did Śibi, the son of Uśīnara, truly give away to the Brāhmaṇas in a sacrificial rite.” The verse praises exemplary generosity (dāna) as a concrete expression of dharma, held up as a moral standard even amid the Mahābhārata’s war narrative.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse upholds dāna as a central practice of dharma: true righteousness is shown through tangible generosity—here, the archetypal gift of cows to worthy recipients in a yajña—measured not by words but by the magnitude of selfless giving.
Nārada recounts a celebrated precedent about King Śibi of the Auśīnara line, describing—through cosmic-scale comparison—how many cows he donated to Brāhmaṇas during a sacrificial rite, thereby presenting Śibi as a moral exemplar.