Shloka 54
Phala of Vrata, Niyama, Svādhyāya, Dama, Satya, Brahmacarya, and Service (व्रत-नियम-स्वाध्याय-दम-सत्य-ब्रह्मचर्य-शुश्रूषा-फलप्रश्नः)
प्राप्त्या पुष्टया लोकसंरक्षणेन गावस्तुल्या: सूर्यपादै: पृथिव्याम् शब्दश्नैक: संततिश्नोपभोगा- स्तस्माद् गोद: सूर्य इवावभाति
prāptyā puṣṭyā lokasaṃrakṣaṇena gāvas tulyāḥ sūryapādaiḥ pṛthivyām | śabdaś caikaḥ “go” iti santatiś copabhogāḥ—tasmād godaḥ sūrya ivāvabhāti ||
Por conceder prosperidade, nutrição e a proteção do mundo, as vacas são tidas nesta terra como comparáveis aos raios do sol. A única palavra “go” designa tanto a vaca quanto o raio solar. Das vacas surgem a linhagem e os meios de fruição e sustento; por isso, quem doa vacas resplandece como o próprio sol, como se concedesse raios.
नाचिकेत उवाच
Educational Q&A
Cow-gift (go-dāna) is praised as a high form of charity because cows sustain society through prosperity, nourishment, and protection of worldly welfare; thus the donor gains radiance and merit comparable to the sun that gives rays.
Nāciketa explains, using a linguistic and symbolic point (the word ‘go’ meaning both cow and sunbeam), why cows are likened to the sun’s rays and why the giver of cows is honored as shining like the sun.