Shloka 12
Chapter 84: Brahmā’s Counsel on Tāraka, the Search for Agni, and the Genesis of Skanda
Kārttikeya
व्यास उवाच गाव: प्रतिष्ठा भूतानां तथा गाव: परायणम् । गाव: पुण्या: पवित्राश्व गोधनं पावनं तथा
vyāsa uvāca gāvaḥ pratiṣṭhā bhūtānāṃ tathā gāvaḥ parāyaṇam | gāvaḥ puṇyāḥ pavitrāś ca godhanaṃ pāvanaṃ tathā ||
Vyāsa nói: “Bò là nền tảng của mọi loài hữu tình, và cũng là nơi nương tựa tối hậu. Bò là phước đức và thanh tịnh; của cải là đàn bò (godhāna) cũng có năng lực thanh tịnh.”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that cows and cattle-wealth are to be regarded as sustaining and purifying, supporting life and dharmic order; honoring and protecting them is presented as ethically and religiously meritorious.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused setting, Vyāsa speaks in praise of cows, framing them as a universal support for beings and as a source of purity and merit, reinforcing norms of dharma related to protection and reverence.