[{'term''uttasthuḥ', 'definition': 'they rose up, they stood up (perfect/preterite of √sthā with ud-)'}, {'term': 'siddhakāmāḥ', 'definition': 'those whose desires/aims are accomplished
[{'term':
fulfilled in purpose'}, {'term''gāvaḥ', 'definition': 'cows (nominative plural of go)'}, {'term': 'tapasā', 'definition': 'by austerity, through ascetic practice'}, {'term': 'mātaraḥ', 'definition': 'mothers, progenitresses'}, {'term': 'bhūta', 'definition': 'the past
fulfilled in purpose'}, {'term':
what has been'}, {'term''bhavya', 'definition': 'the future
what has been'}, {'term':
what is to be'}, {'term''prātaḥ', 'definition': 'in the morning, at dawn'}, {'term': 'namasyāḥ / namasyāt', 'definition': 'should be saluted/revered (gerundive/optative sense: ‘one should bow’)'}, {'term': 'praṇāma', 'definition': 'bowing, respectful salutation (implied by namasyā-)'}, {'term': 'puṣṭi', 'definition': 'nourishment, thriving, prosperity, bodily strength'}, {'term': 'avāpnuyāt', 'definition': 'one would obtain/attain (optative of ava-√āp)'}]
what is to be'}, {'term':
Speaker
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Characters & Entities
V
Vasiṣṭha
C
cows (gāvaḥ)
Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches daily reverence toward cows as a dharmic practice: honoring them—seen as life-sustaining and symbolically ‘mothers of time’—is said to yield puṣṭi, i.e., nourishment, strength, and well-being.
Vasiṣṭha describes cows who, after completing their tapas and achieving their purpose, rise up; he then draws a prescriptive lesson for householders: bow to cows each morning to gain flourishing and vitality.
