Shloka 21
द्रोणेन दुर्योधनस्य कवचबन्धनम् — Drona’s Mantra-Bound Armor for Duryodhana
कृषिं च सस्यं च नरा दुदुहुः पृथिवीतले । स्वायम्भुवो मनुर्वत्सस्तेषां दोग्धाभवत् पृथु:,भूतलके मनुष्योंने कृषिकर्म और खेतीकी उपजको ही दूधके रूपमें दुह्ा। उनके बछड़ेके स्थानपर स्वायम्भू मनु थे और दुहनेका कार्य पृथुने किया
kṛṣiṃ ca sasyaṃ ca narā duduḥuḥ pṛthivītale | svāyambhuvo manur vatsas teṣāṃ dogdhābhavat pṛthuḥ ||
Nārada said: Upon the surface of the earth, men ‘milked’ agriculture and the produce of crops as though it were nourishment. For them Svāyambhuva Manu served as the calf, and Pṛthu acted as the milker—thus the earth’s bounty was drawn forth in an orderly, dharmic way for human sustenance.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Prosperity is not merely taken from nature; it is ‘drawn forth’ through dharmic order—right leadership (Pṛthu), lawful social guidance (Manu), and disciplined human effort (kṛṣi). The metaphor teaches stewardship: resources yield abundance when approached with restraint, structure, and responsibility.
Nārada describes a mythic episode where the earth is treated like a cow. Humans obtain nourishment in the form of agriculture and crop-yield. Svāyambhuva Manu functions as the calf (the enabling focus of the milking), while King Pṛthu performs the act of milking—symbolizing the king’s role in organizing and extracting the earth’s bounty for society.