Shloka 66
Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)
कपिलायां तु दत्तायां यत् फल ज्येष्ठपुष्करे । तत् फलं भरतश्रेष्ठ विप्राणां पादधावने,भरतश्रेष्ठ! ज्येष्ठपुष्करतीर्थमें कपिला गौ दान करनेसे जो फल मिलता है वही ब्राह्मणोंका चरण धोनेसे प्राप्त होता है
kapilāyāṃ tu dattāyāṃ yat phalaṃ jyeṣṭha-puṣkare | tat phalaṃ bharata-śreṣṭha viprāṇāṃ pāda-dhāvane ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O best of the Bharatas, the merit that is gained by gifting a tawny cow at the sacred ford of Jyeṣṭha-Puṣkara—that very same merit is obtained by washing the feet of Brahmins.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse equates the spiritual merit of an eminent pilgrimage-donation (gifting a kapilā cow at Jyeṣṭha-Puṣkara) with humble personal service—washing the feet of Brahmins—highlighting that reverent service can match the merit of costly ritual charity.
In the Vana Parva’s tīrtha-oriented discourse, Yudhiṣṭhira states a dharma principle to his interlocutor: the fruit of a renowned act of dāna at a famous sacred place is attainable through the simpler, ethical act of honoring and serving Brahmins.