Shloka 9

Gopradāna-phalasaṃprāpti: Nāciketa’s Vision of Vaivasvata’s Realms (गोप्रदानफलसम्प्राप्तिः — नाचिकेतोपाख्यानम्)

Devanagari script

प्राणदानाद्धि परमं न दानमिह विद्यते । श्रुतं हि ते महाबाहो लोमशस्यापि तद्धबच:

Transliteration

prāṇadānād dhi paramaṁ na dānam iha vidyate | śrutaṁ hi te mahābāho lomaśasyāpi tad vacaḥ ||

Translation

ភីष្មៈបានមានព្រះវាចា៖ «ពិតប្រាកដណាស់ ក្នុងលោកនេះ មិនមានទានណាខ្ពស់ជាងទានជីវិតឡើយ។ ព្រោះពេលមនុស្សម្នាក់ផ្តល់អាហារដល់អ្នកដទៃ នោះដូចជាបានផ្តល់ដង្ហើមរបស់គេផ្ទាល់។ ឱ! អ្នកមានដៃខ្លាំងអើយ អ្នកក៏បានឮពាក្យដដែលនេះពីឥសី លោមសៈ ផងដែរ»។

Word by Word

• {'prāṇadānāt': 'from/than the giving of life (prāṇa = vital breath, life

• dāna = gift)', 'hi': 'indeed, for', 'paramam': 'supreme, highest', 'na': 'not', 'dānam': 'gift, charity', 'iha': 'here, in this world', 'vidyate': 'is found, exists', 'śrutam': 'heard', 'te': 'by you, to you', 'mahābāho': 'O mighty-armed (epithet of the listener, typically Yudhiṣṭhira)', 'lomaśasya': 'of Lomaśa (a sage)', 'api': 'also, even', 'tat': 'that', 'vacaḥ': 'speech, statement, saying'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Lomaśa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

That sustaining another’s life is the highest form of charity; giving food is ethically equivalent to giving life itself, and thus surpasses other gifts.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma, instructing the listener (addressed as ‘mahābāho’), emphasizes the supremacy of life-giving charity and supports his point by citing a remembered statement attributed to the sage Lomaśa.