Shloka 124
Right Conduct, Offenses Against Brāhmaṇas, Truthfulness, and the Greatness of the Cow
Go-Māhātmya
ब्रह्मोवाच । शृणु चात्र यथातथ्यं ब्राह्मणानां गवां यथा । एकपिंडक्रियैक्यं तु पुरुषैर्निर्मितं पुरा
brahmovāca | śṛṇu cātra yathātathyaṃ brāhmaṇānāṃ gavāṃ yathā | ekapiṃḍakriyaikyaṃ tu puruṣairnirmitaṃ purā
ब्रह्मा म्हणाले—येथे यथार्थ गोष्ट ऐक; ब्राह्मण आणि गायींबाबत जसे सत्य आहे तसे. प्राचीन काळी पुरुषांनी असा नियम ठरविला की एकच पिंडदान आणि एकच क्रियासमूह यामुळे (त्यांचे) एकत्व मानले जाते.
Brahmā
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Sandhi Resolution Notes: ब्रह्मोवाच = ब्रह्मा + उवाच; चात्र = च + अत्र; यथातथ्यं = यथा + तथ्यम् (अव्ययीभाव); क्रियैक्यं = क्रिया + ऐक्यम्; पुरुषैर्निर्मितं = पुरुषैः + निर्मितम्.
FAQs
It pairs two highly protected, dharma-central categories in Purāṇic ethics—Brāhmaṇas (custodians of sacred learning/ritual) and cows (symbols of sustenance and sanctity)—to frame the rule being explained as especially authoritative and socially binding.
It refers to treating the funeral offering (piṇḍa) and the associated rites (kriyā) as a single, shared ritual unit—typically used to define or express a form of familial/ritual unity in śrāddha-related contexts.
That ritual obligations and social-religious bonds are not arbitrary: they are grounded in received norms (purā—“from old”), and should be understood carefully “as it truly is” before being practiced or disputed.