Shloka 43

Gautama–Śakra Saṃvāda: Karma, Loka-bheda, and the Restoration of the Elephant

Devanagari script

धृतराष्ट उवाच यो गोसहस्री शतद: समां समां गवां शती दश दद्याच्च शक्‍त्या । तथा दशभ्यो यश्न दद्यादिहैकां पज्चभ्यो वा दानशीलस्तथैकाम्‌

Transliteration

dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | yo gosaḥasrī śatadaḥ samāṃ samāṃ gavāṃ śatī daśa dadyāc ca śaktyā | tathā daśabhyo yaś ca dadyād ihaikāṃ pañcabhyo vā dānaśīlas tathaikām |

Translation

ਧ੍ਰਿਤਰਾਸ਼ਟਰ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ—ਜਿਸ ਕੋਲ ਹਜ਼ਾਰ ਗਾਂਵਾਂ ਹੋਣ ਅਤੇ ਉਹ ਹਰ ਸਾਲ ਸੌ ਗਾਂਵਾਂ ਦਾਨ ਕਰੇ; ਜਿਸ ਕੋਲ ਸੌ ਹੋਣ ਅਤੇ ਉਹ ਆਪਣੀ ਸਮਰੱਥਾ ਅਨੁਸਾਰ ਦਸ ਦਾਨ ਕਰੇ; ਜਿਸ ਕੋਲ ਕੇਵਲ ਦਸ ਹੋਣ ਤਾਂ ਵੀ ਉਹ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਵਿੱਚੋਂ ਇੱਕ ਗਾਂ ਦਾਨ ਕਰੇ—ਅਥਵਾ ਜੋ ਦਾਨਸ਼ੀਲ ਪੁਰਖ ਪੰਜ ਵਿੱਚੋਂ ਇੱਕ ਗਾਂ ਦਾਨ ਕਰ ਦੇਵੇ—ਉਹ ਗਵਾਂ-ਲੋਕ (ਗੋਲੋਕ) ਨੂੰ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ।

Word by Word

• धृतराष्ट्रः: Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• धृतराष्ट्रः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: धृतराष्ट्र
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उवाच: said
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect (Paroksha), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• यः: who
• यः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• गोसहस्री: possessing a thousand cows
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गोसहस्रिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• शतदः: giver of a hundred
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शतद
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• समाम्: year (as a time-span)
• समाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: समा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• समाम्: year (each year)
• समाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: समा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• गवाम्: of cows
• Type: Noun
• Root: गो
• Form: Feminine, Genitive, Plural

• शती: having a hundred (cows)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शतिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• दश: ten
• दश: Karma
• Type: Numeral
• Root: दशन्
• Form: Accusative, Plural, Feminine (agreeing with गाः understood)

• दद्यात्: should give
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• शक्त्या: according to ability / with capacity
• शक्त्या: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शक्ति
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• तथा: likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• दशभ्यः: from (among) ten
• दशभ्यः: Apadana
• Type: Numeral
• Root: दशन्
• Form: Ablative, Plural, Feminine (agreeing with गाः understood)

• यः: who
• यः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• दद्यात्: should give
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• इह: here (in this world)
• इह: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इह

• एकाम्: one (cow)
• एकाम्: Karma
• Type: Numeral/Adjective
• Root: एका
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• पञ्चभ्यः: from (among) five
• पञ्चभ्यः: Apadana
• Type: Numeral
• Root: पञ्चन्
• Form: Ablative, Plural, Feminine (agreeing with गाः understood)

• वा: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा

• दानशीलः: generous / of giving nature
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दानशील
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तथा: likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• एकाम्: one (cow)
• एकाम्: Karma
• Type: Numeral/Adjective
• Root: एका
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• cows (go/gavām)
• Goloka (implied by context of the verse and the cited passage)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Charity is measured by proportion and sincerity, not sheer wealth: giving according to one’s capacity—whether from a thousand, a hundred, ten, or five—earns religious merit and leads to a blessed posthumous state associated with cows (Goloka).

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused discourse, Dhṛtarāṣṭra speaks about the merit of gifting cows, specifying graded examples of donors at different levels of wealth and affirming the spiritual reward for such giving.