Shloka 25
गोप्रदानगुणाः तथा कपिलागोविधानम्
Merits of Cow-Gift and the Origin-Account of Kapilā Cows
वैश्यस्यैते यदि गुणास्तस्य पठचशतं भवेत् । शूद्रस्यापि विनीतस्य चतुर्भागफलं स्मृतम्
vaiśyasyāite yadi guṇās tasya pañcaśataṁ bhavet | śūdrasyāpi vinītasya caturbhāgaphalaṁ smṛtam |
Bhīṣma berkata: “Jika seorang Vaiśya memiliki kebajikan-kebajikan yang sama ini, maka pahalanya dihitung sebagai lima ratus (lembu)—walaupun perbuatan zahirnya hanya satu pemberian lembu. Dan bagi seorang Śūdra yang berdisiplin serta rendah hati, buahnya diingati sebagai suku bahagian—bersamaan dua ratus lima puluh ekor lembu. Ajarannya ialah: mutu akhlak si pemberi—kawalan diri, kerendahan hati, dan perilaku yang benar—melipatgandakan nilai rohani sedekah melampaui ukuran kebendaan.”
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
The merit of a gift is not determined only by the object given, but by the giver’s inner virtues and discipline; ethical refinement increases the spiritual fruit even for those outside the Brahmin class.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction on dāna-dharma in the Anuśāsana Parva, he explains graded results of cow-gifting: a virtuous Vaiśya gains merit equated to five hundred cows, and a humble, well-disciplined Śūdra gains a quarter-share of the Brahmin-standard merit (stated as two hundred and fifty cows in the received explanation).