Shloka 15
Suvarṇa-janma and Dakṣiṇā-Māhātmya
Origin and Supremacy of Gold as Ritual Fee
यया सर्वमिदं व्याप्तं जगत् स्थावरजंगमम् । तां धेनुं शिरसा वन्दे भूतभव्यस्य मातरम्,जिसने समस्त चराचर जगतको व्याप्त कर रखा है, उस भूत और भविष्यकी जननी गौको मैं मस्तक झुकाकर प्रणाम करता हूँ
yayā sarvam idaṁ vyāptaṁ jagat sthāvara-jaṅgamam | tāṁ dhenuṁ śirasā vande bhūta-bhavyasya mātaram ||
Vasiṣṭha berkata: “Aku menundukkan kepala menyembah Lembu itu yang meliputi seluruh alam semesta ini—yang tidak bergerak dan yang bergerak—yang menjadi ibu bagi yang telah ada dan yang akan datang.”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates the Cow (dhenu) as a universal mother and a symbol of sustaining nourishment that pervades all life—movable and immovable—encouraging reverence, gratitude, and non-harm toward life-supporting beings.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused setting, Vasiṣṭha offers a formal salutation (vandana) to the Cow, praising her as all-pervading and as the generative source of past and future beings, thereby framing ethical instruction through devotional reverence.