dāna
“merit of gift-giving”
idea · 5 works · 6 mentions · 12 anchored passages
gift · Dharma of giving · dowry gifts · gift of cows · gift-giving · giving · invalid gift · meritorious gift · the dān · the gift
spoken of as
3 expressionsGift-giving“dāna”2 mentions
Manusmṛti (Sanskrit) · Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa (Sanskrit)
Of all gifts—of water, food, cows, land, clothes, sesame seeds, gold, and ghee—the gift of the Veda is the most excellent.
Gift“dāna”1 mention
Bṛhaspati Smṛti (Sanskrit)
The enjoyer of a void gift shall be punished, and likewise the giver of an invalid gift.
meritorious gift“dāna”1 mention
Slokantara (Kawi)
When a virtuous person gives a meritorious gift, even if the gift given is small, if it brings happiness to the mind of the recipient and is caused by the purity of heart of the giver—*śuddha* means pure/clear—the giver will find a great reward.
in the texts
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa
The doctrine that charitable giving yields great merit, and its absence brings suffering.
"For the gift of something already given is said to yield very great fruit;
"'"You made not even the smallest gift in that forest inhabited by living creatures;
Then the king of the Videhas, the lord of Mithilā, bestowed lavish bridal gifts — many hundreds of thousands of cows.
Atharvaveda (Paippalāda)
The ritual gift whose bestowal frees one from darkness.
Without the gift of the dān, one is not freed from darkness.
Bṛhaspati Smṛti
The act of giving property, classified into valid, invalid, and void categories with graded religious merit depending on recipient.
The enjoyer of a void gift shall be punished, and likewise the giver of an invalid gift.
whatever is given by these, that is declared to be a gift considered void.
What is a gift from affection, what is inherited, and what is obtained by valor, when given with the permission of the woman, kinsmen, and master, it attains validity.
Manusmṛti
The practice and duty of charitable giving, with specific gifts yielding specific cosmological rewards.
Of all gifts—of water, food, cows, land, clothes, sesame seeds, gold, and ghee—the gift of the Veda is the most excellent.
One should always practice the Dharma of giving, both sacrificial and charitable, with a pleased mind, having found a worthy recipient, according to one's ability.
With whatever disposition a man gives any gift, with that same disposition he receives it in return, being duly honored.
Slokantara
The practice of giving, whose spiritual reward varies by timing, recipient, and the giver's inner state.
When a virtuous person gives a meritorious gift, even if the gift given is small, if it brings happiness to the mind of the recipient and is caused by the purity of heart of the giver—*śuddha* means pure/clear—the giver will find a great reward.
Therefore, let not your mind be mixed with evil if you wish to perform a meritorious gift.
On the full moon and the new moon, when a virtuous person performs a meritorious gift, one returns as ten from the Lord.