Shloka 45

Phala of Vrata, Niyama, Svādhyāya, Dama, Satya, Brahmacarya, and Service (व्रत-नियम-स्वाध्याय-दम-सत्य-ब्रह्मचर्य-शुश्रूषा-फलप्रश्नः)

Devanagari script

इदं च मामब्रवीद्‌ धर्मराज: पुन: पुन: सम्प्रहृष्टो महर्षे । दानेन यः प्रयतो5भूत्‌ सदैव विशेषतो गोप्रदानं च कुर्यात्‌

Transliteration

idaṃ ca mām abravīd dharmarājaḥ punaḥ punaḥ samprahṛṣṭo maharṣe | dānena yaḥ prayato 'bhūt sadaiva viśeṣato gopradānaṃ ca kuryāt, maharṣe ||

Translation

ਮਹਰਿਸ਼ੇ! ਧਰਮਰਾਜ ਨੇ ਹਿਰਦੇ ਵਿੱਚ ਪ੍ਰਸੰਨ ਹੋ ਕੇ ਮੁੜ ਮੁੜ ਮੈਨੂੰ ਇਹ ਵੀ ਆਖਿਆ—“ਜੋ ਦਾਨ ਰਾਹੀਂ ਸਦਾ ਆਪਣੇ ਆਪ ਨੂੰ ਪਵਿੱਤਰ ਰੱਖਣਾ ਚਾਹੇ, ਉਹ ਵਿਸ਼ੇਸ਼ ਕਰਕੇ ਗੋਦਾਨ ਕਰੇ।”

Word by Word

• {'idaṃ': 'this (statement/teaching)', 'ca': 'and

• also', 'mām': 'to me', 'abravīt': 'said

• spoke', 'dharmarājaḥ': 'Dharmarāja (the king of dharma

• Yudhiṣṭhira)', 'punaḥ punaḥ': 'again and again

• repeatedly', 'samprahṛṣṭaḥ': 'greatly delighted

• pleased', 'maharṣe': 'O great sage (vocative address)', 'dānena': 'by giving

• through charity', 'yaḥ': 'whoever', 'prayataḥ': 'restrained

• earnest in discipline', 'abhūt': 'would be

• becomes', 'sadaiva': 'always

• continually', 'viśeṣataḥ': 'especially

• in particular', 'go-pradānam': 'gift of cows

• cow-donation', 'kuryāt': 'should do

Speaker

नाचिकेत उवाच

Characters & Entities

• नाचिकेत (Nāciketa)
• धर्मराज (Dharmarāja/Yudhiṣṭhira)
• महर्षि (Mahārṣi, addressed)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Charity is presented as a means of ongoing inner purification, and among gifts, go-dāna (the donation of cows) is singled out as especially meritorious and dharmic.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nāciketa reports a repeated instruction he received from Dharmarāja, who, in a pleased mood, emphasizes to him that those seeking continual purity through giving should particularly undertake the gift of cows.