Shloka 24
Go-mahātmyam: Pavitrāṇāṃ Pavitraṃ
Cows and Ghee as Supreme Purifiers
अमृतेनावसिक्तस्त्वं नोच्छिष्टं विद्यते गवाम् । यथा हामृतमादाय सोमो विस्यन्दते पुन:
amṛtenāvasiktas tvaṃ nocchiṣṭaṃ vidyate gavām | yathā hāmṛtam ādāya somo visyandate punaḥ ||
Bhīṣma nói: “Ngươi đã được rưới bằng cam lộ; vì thế, đối với loài bò không có điều gọi là ‘đồ thừa’ (ô uế do phần còn lại). Như Soma, sau khi thâu nhận cam lộ, lại tuôn chảy ra lần nữa.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts the exceptional ritual purity and sanctity of cows: because they are regarded as consecrated with amṛta, what would normally be considered ‘ucchiṣṭa’ (impure remnants) does not apply to them. The Soma analogy reinforces the idea of a sacred substance that remains pure and life-giving even as it is ‘taken’ and then ‘flows’ again.
Bhīṣma is explaining a dharma principle connected with cows and purity rules. He justifies why ordinary impurity concepts like ‘leftovers’ are not attributed to cows, using a Vedic image: Soma, associated with amṛta, continues to stream forth even after being received—symbolizing inexhaustible sacred purity.