Anushasana Parva Adhyaya 74 Shloka 40 - Mahabharata | Tamil | Vedapath

Vyasa

Shloka 40

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

Devanagari script

घृतालाभे तु यो दद्यात्‌ तिलधेनुं यतव्रत: । स दुर्गात्‌ तारितो थेन्वा क्षीरनद्यां प्रमोदते

Transliteration

ghṛtālābhe tu yo dadyāt tiladhenuṁ yatavrataḥ | sa durgāt tārito dhenuvā kṣīranadyāṁ pramodate ||

Translation

நெய் கிடைக்காதபோது விரதநியமங்களில் நிலைத்தவன் எள்ளால் செய்யப்பட்ட தான-பசுவை அளித்தால், அந்தப் பசுதானத்தின் புண்ணியத்தால் அவன் அபாயத்திலிருந்து மீண்டு பால்-நதியில் மகிழ்வான்.

Word by Word

घृतालाभेin the non-obtaining/lack of ghee

तुbut/indeed

यःwho

दद्यात्should give

तिलधेनुम्a sesame-made cow (tiladhenu)

यतव्रतःone of restrained vows/observances

सःhe

दुर्गात्from difficulty/danger

तारितःhaving been delivered/saved

धेन्वाby that cow (the donated tiladhenu)

क्षीरनद्याम्in the river of milk

प्रमोदतेrejoices/delights

Speaker

नाचिकेत उवाच

Characters & Entities

Naciketa

tiladhenu (sesame-cow donation)

ghṛta (ghee)

kṣīranadī (river of milk)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

If an ideal offering (here, ghee) is unavailable, one should still practice disciplined charity by giving an appropriate substitute (tiladhenu). Sincere, vow-guided giving protects one from adversity and yields auspicious, even heavenly, results.

What is happening in the narrative?

Naciketa states a rule of gift-giving: in the absence of ghee, a vow-observant donor gives a sesame-made ‘cow’ as a ritual donation. The merit of that gift is said to deliver the donor from danger and grant joy in the symbolic ‘river of milk’ in the next world.