Shloka 61
Vānaprastha-dharma and Tapas: Śiva–Umā Saṃvāda
Forest-Stage Discipline and Austerity
बालवसत्सां च ये धेनुं दुहन्ति क्षीरकारणात् । तेषां दोषान् प्रवक्ष्यामि तान् निबोध शचीपते
bālavatsāṁ ca ye dhenuṁ duhanti kṣīra-kāraṇāt | teṣāṁ doṣān pravakṣyāmi tān nibodha śacīpate ||
Śakra nói: “Những kẻ vắt sữa một con bò vẫn còn bê non, chỉ vì tham lấy sữa—ta sẽ nói rõ những lỗi lầm của họ. Hãy lắng nghe kỹ, hỡi chúa tể của Śacī.”
शक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse introduces an ethical critique: exploiting a cow that is still nursing a young calf—motivated purely by one’s own gain—is treated as blameworthy. It frames dharma as restraint and compassion, especially toward dependent beings.
Śakra (Indra) begins a didactic passage, announcing that he will enumerate the moral faults incurred by those who milk a cow with a young calf for the sake of milk, and he calls upon Śacī’s lord (i.e., himself addressed in relation to Śacī) to attend carefully to the forthcoming explanation.