Shloka 6

स्त्रीणां माहात्म्यप्रश्नः — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry into the Excellence of Women

Pativratā-Dharma

Devanagari script

इत्युक्त्वा ब्राह्मणाय राजा गोसहस्रं ददौ । प्राप्तवांश्ष गवां सहस्र॑ ब्राह्मण इति,ऐसा कहकर राजाने ब्राह्मणको एक हजार गौएँ दे दीं और ब्राह्मणने उन सहस्रों गौओंको ग्रहण कर लिया

Transliteration

ity uktvā brāhmaṇāya rājā go-sahasraṃ dadau | prāptavān gāvāṃ sahasraṃ brāhmaṇaḥ ||

Translation

ഇങ്ങനെ പറഞ്ഞ് രാജാവ് ബ്രാഹ്മണന് ആയിരം പശുക്കൾ ദാനമായി നൽകി; ബ്രാഹ്മണൻ ആ ആയിരം പശുക്കൾ സ്വീകരിച്ചു.

Word by Word

इतिthus

उक्त्वाhaving said

ब्राह्मणायto the Brahmin

राजाthe king

गो-सहस्रम्a thousand cows

ददौgave

प्राप्तवान्having obtained/received

गवाम्of cows

सहस्रम्a thousand

ब्राह्मणःthe Brahmin

Speaker

ब्राह्मण उवाच

Characters & Entities

rājā (king)

brāhmaṇa (brahmin)

go/gāvaḥ (cows)

go-sahasra (a thousand cows)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights dāna as a key expression of dharma: the king fulfills his duty through generous gifting, and the brāhmaṇa’s acceptance signifies a socially sanctioned transfer of wealth meant to support learning, ritual, and righteous living.

What is happening in the narrative?

After making a statement (implied by ‘having said thus’), the king gives the brāhmaṇa a thousand cows, and the brāhmaṇa receives them—marking the completion of a formal act of donation.