Shloka 16
Go-mahātmyam: Pavitrāṇāṃ Pavitraṃ
Cows and Ghee as Supreme Purifiers
इतीदं मनसा गत्वा प्रजासर्गार्थमात्मन: । प्रजापतिस्तु भगवानमृतं प्रापिबत् तदा,प्रजाजनोंकी इस स्थितिपर मन-ही-मन विचार करके भगवान् प्रजापतिने प्रजावर्गकी आजीविकाके लिये उस समय अमृतका पान किया
itīdaṁ manasā gatvā prajā-sargārtham ātmanaḥ | prajāpatis tu bhagavān amṛtaṁ prāpibat tadā ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Setelah demikian merenung dalam fikirannya demi tujuan melahirkan dan memelihara makhluk hidup, Tuhan Prajāpati yang mulia pun pada ketika itu meminum amṛta, nektar keabadian. Perbuatan itu digambarkan sebagai tekad yang disengajakan, berteraskan kebajikan—dilakukan untuk menjamin sumber penghidupan dan kelangsungan para makhluk yang diciptakan.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames authority and power as justified when directed toward the welfare and sustenance of beings. Prajāpati’s action follows deliberate inner reflection and is oriented to prajā-sarga—creation and maintenance—suggesting that even extraordinary resources (like amṛta) are to be used with responsibility for the common good.
Bhīṣma narrates that Prajāpati, after mentally considering the condition and needs of the created beings, drinks amṛta at that time, implying a purposeful act connected with enabling creation and securing the livelihood/continuance of the subjects.