Varaha Purana — Adhyaya 111, Shloka 11
The Eulogy of Donating a Tawny (Kapilā) Cow
गवां कण्डूयनं श्रेष्ठं तथा च परिपालनम् ॥ तुल्यं गोशतदानस्य भयरोगादिपालने ॥
gavāṃ kaṇḍūyanaṃ śreṣṭhaṃ tathā ca paripālanam || tulyaṃ gośatadānasya bhayarogādipālane ||
နွားတို့ကို အကောင်းဆုံးပြုစုခြင်းမှာ ယားယံမှုကို သက်သာစေခြင်းနှင့် ကာကွယ်ထိန်းသိမ်း၍ မွေးမြူစောင့်ရှောက်ခြင်း ဖြစ်သည်။ ကြောက်ရွံ့မှု၊ ရောဂါ စသည်တို့မှ ကာကွယ်ပေးခြင်းကို နွားတစ်ရာ လှူဒါန်းခြင်းနှင့် တူညီသည်ဟု ဆိုကြသည်။
Varāha
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"aspect_highlighted":"None","boar_form_detail":"None","earth_interaction":"None"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":false,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"None","key_question":"None"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false,"specific_site":"None","parikrama_context":"None","krishna_connection":"None"}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"dana","instruction_summary":"Active cow-care—relieving itching and protecting/maintaining cattle from fear and disease—is praised as equal to gifting a hundred cows.","karmic_consequence":"Cow-protection yields the puṇya of go-śata-dāna; neglect of protection implies forfeiture of that merit and ethical blame for harm to dependents."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false,"vrata_name":"None","tithi_month":"None","promised_fruit":"Merit equivalent to donating one hundred cows through practical animal welfare."}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false,"symbolic_interpretation":"None","yajna_varaha_imagery":"None","vedantic_connection":"None"}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"Ethics of care as superior/equal to symbolic charity","core_concept":"Sustained protection and alleviation of suffering (dayā + rakṣaṇa) is a high form of dharma, sometimes surpassing one-time gifts.","practical_application":"Support animal welfare: provide shelter, veterinary care, freedom from fear, and daily maintenance; treat service as dāna-in-action."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Ecological Stewardship"]
Primary Rasa: Karuṇa
Secondary Rasa: Śānta
Type: Pastoral-ethical landscape
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 111.8–11 (cow-related purity/merit logic)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Varāha (as divine teacher) indicates a cow being gently scratched/treated; attendants protect a herd from threats and tend to illness, while a symbolic ‘100 cows’ donation appears as a radiant tally.","item_prompts":["Lord Varāha in teaching posture (upadeśa)","cow being relieved of itching (kandūyana)","herd under protection (fence/shelter)","healer tending a sick cow","symbolic ‘100 cows’ merit motif (rows/haloed silhouettes)"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: Varāha as dignified instructor, pastoral scene with stylized cows, emphasis on compassionate gesture and protective enclosure.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: gold-leaf halo around Varāha, richly ornamented cowshed, embossed cow silhouettes suggesting go-śata-dāna equivalence.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: classical courtly Varāha with gentle expression, detailed cows and caretakers, balanced composition of care and protection.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: idyllic hillside pasture, Varāha teaching at one side, caretakers scratching and guarding cows, bright narrative clarity."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"Compassionate instruction","suggested_raga":"Kalyani","pace":"Medium","voice_tone":"Warm, exhortative, emphasizing equivalence (tulyaṃ) and protective duty"}
FAQs
It reflects Purāṇic dāna-dharma discourse where merit is also attributed to practical care (seva) and protection, not only to formal donations.
No specific geographic location is named in this verse; the focus is ethical instruction regarding cattle-care.
Active protection and welfare of animals—preventing fear and disease—is presented as a high-value moral act comparable to major ritualized charity.
Ask anything about this verse
Curious about the meaning, context, or a word? Ask, and continue the conversation in the Vedapath app.
A free Google sign-in keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Varaha Purana in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with audio, word-by-word meanings, and more.