Impact of Vedic Culture on Society

by Kaushik Acharya | 2020 | 120,081 words

This page relates ‘Dana in the Puranas’ of the study on the Impact of Vedic Culture on Society as Reflected in Select Sanskrit Inscriptions found in Northern India (4th Century CE to 12th Century CE). These pages discuss the ancient Indian tradition of Dana (making gifts, donation). They further study the migration, rituals and religious activities of Brahmanas and reveal how kings of northern India granted lands for the purpose of austerities and Vedic education.

1.D: Dāna in the Purāṇas

[Full title: The Concept of Dāna and its Understanding in the Indian Context (D): The Purāṇas]

Not only in the Vedas , Dharmaśāstras and the Gītā, much had been said about dāna in the Purāṇas as well. In the Purāṇic age, the idea was that the debts of ancestors, gods, and sages could be repaid with donations.Also, not giving anything to anyone is considered a sin that the householder should avoid.[1] Six distinct elements were mentioned in the context of charity- dātā (the donor), pratigrahītā (the recipient or donee), śraddhā (respectful attitude), deya (the appropriateness of the gift), tithi (appropriate time), and deśa (proper place of the grant).[2] The recipient should be a brāhmaṇa, who should be a snātaka, śrotriya (the one who knew the Vedas). And a brāhmaṇa should not be hypocritical or self-centered or selfish by nature. Donors would get merit (puṇya) only if the charity is given in a generous spirit. Acceptance of the gift in the proper place and time alone make it a religious offering. It is said, there was a possibility of a loss of knowledge with donations, which only a well-deserving recipient can prevent. No repayment would have been desired in case of proper dāna benefits of which were purely religious. In times of emergency, brāhmaṇas could take anything from anyone, though transactions were hierarchical.[3]

In this context one of the largest Purāṇa, the Skandapurāṇa (containing over 81,000 verses) may illuminate our present discussion since the earliest text titled as Skandapurāṇa is considered by some scholars to have existed in the 8th century CE[4] and that describes charity with all its perspectives and directions. In Kaumārikā Khaṇḍa of Skandapurāṇa[5] Arjuna visited the āśrama of Sage Nārada and secured his blessings, especially since Arjuna made the Pañcapsara tīrthas accessible once again. In this context, Nārada told Arjuna that dāna has two hetus (causes, motives), six adhiṣṭhānas (bases of charity), six aṅgas (ancillaries), two pākas (places of fruition), four prakāras (varieties), three vidhis (procedures) and three nāśas (destructive factors or agents).

The two hetus as normally perceived are the size of the charity, small or big, as also of the quality of the charity. But such hetus are not as important as the śraddhā or dedication, and devotion. Ṥiva would be pleased only by the sincerity and pure heart that is attached to the charity rather than any other aspect. Again, dhanadāna (charity of money) is more popular than vāstudāna’ (charity of material), vastradāna’ (charity of clothes), etc. since charity of money makes the recipient capable to buy vāstu or vastra.

Then the six adhiṣṭhānas are dharmadāna (without strings attached like dāna given to the virtuous or dharmātmās) a rthadāna’ (keeping in view some purpose or utility), kāmadāna (like favors for women, wine or such other benefits in view), lajjādāna is due to compulsions imposed by public or society; harṣadāna’ is made on receiving good news and out of happiness; and bhayadāna out of compulsion, fear or avoidance of risks.

The six aṅgas or six types of donor-receivers are as follows. Positive donors are dātās by nature. The dharmātmā or the virtuous are those desirous of donating willingly and happily, the vyasanarahita or the person with no bad habit, pavitra or symbols of purity, anindanīya or the one without any fault. The negative donors are not pleasantmannered, are indolent, evil-minded, persons of bad habits, who swear to support the evil and persons who are sleepy by nature.

Among the good receivers of dāna are those of good kula or family, who has vidyā or good education, good ācāra’ or family bearing/tradition, earners of a proper way of life or sāttvika life, of kind heart, jitendriya(whohas controlled his senses) and very importantly having excellent parents. The second category of receivers is of pleasant appearance, sincere and thankful, not of demanding, cantankerous or mean nature,. The donors of charity must have the perspective of what kind of material is useful to the receiver. Otherwise, the purpose of charity would be defeated.

The two pariṇāmas or end results/ fruits are either gain of puṇya for the paraloka or after world or for use in ihaloka or thisworld to the receiver. Dānas for ihaloka are of four types viz. dhruva, trikha, kamya, and naimittika. Dhruva is for public use like digging wells, construction of temples, gardens, etc. Trikha is for a daily utility like nitya dāna, like vidyādāna. Kāmyadāna is to fulfill one’s own desires like victory, wealth, etc. Naimittikadāna is like saṃkrāntidāna, grahaṇa (eclipse) dāna, dāna at auspicious occasions like weddings, vratas, etc. or kriyāpekṣadāna like śrāddhā, vratas, etc.; guṇāpekṣadāna like vidyābhyāsa and so on.

Among the three types of dāna, the best are the charity of houses, temples, buildings, bhūmi (farms/fields), cows, wells, gold, and ornaments and the best, of course, is to give away one’s own life itself as dāna. The secondary variety of charity relates to anna (food grains), vastra (clothing), vāhana etc. The tertiary kind of dāna is to donate footwear, umbrellas, utensils, curd, honey, āsana’ or seat, deepa or light, wood, stones, etc. And finally, now, there are three kinds of dānanāśakas viz. anutāpa or regret of having given the dāna; apātradāna’ or charity to the wrong and undeserving person or aśraddhādāna given to a person on account of without respect. The worst dāna is paiśācadāna’ or the charity duly given which is returned under duress or due to bad behavior of the receiver or the donor.

Bhaviṣyapurāṇa emphasizes on the following forms of charity and states their benefits. Cows should be donated for the benefit of wealth. Land should be granted for a source of income, and for prosperity, the charity of knowledge is the most crucial dharma. These benefits are believed to continue for seven generations. The fourth and final part of the text called Uttaraparvan of Bhaviṣyapurāṇa describes such dāna (charity) along with festivals related to various brahmanical gods and goddesses as well as mythology and a discussion of vrata (vow).[6] In a Brahmanical wedding kanyādāna refers to the ritual where a father marries off his daughter to the groom, so he gives his kanyā (daughter) as an item of dāna. The father asks the groom for a promise towards his wife. The groom promises the bride’s father that he will fulfill these promises.

Helping others selflessly is well portrayed in the story of King Rantideva.[7] When a devastating famine struck his kingdom, he wanted to share the suffering with all, and he fasted until all his people were fed. When he was about to break his long fast with just a glass of water, he heard the cry of a thirsty person. Even then, he gave the glass of water to that man. The compassionate king was a great devotee of Lord Viṣṇu and saw the Lord in everyone. Serving and giving charity to the one who needs the most pleases the Lord. To him, service to man is service to God. The one who selflessly serves and helps others attains all the best in his life. And dāna includes selfless service to those in need.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Vijay Nath, op. cit., p. 21.

[2]:

P.V. Kane, op. cit., p. 847.

[3]:

Axel Michaels, ‘Gift and Return Gift, Greetings and Return Greetings from India, On a Consequential Footnote Marcel Mauss’, in Numen, vol. 44, no.3, pp. 249-51.

[4]:

Richard D. Mann, The Rise of Mahāsena, p. 187.

[5]:

G.V. Tagore, The Skanda-Purana, section -II, chap. IV, “dialogue between Nārada and Arjuna”.

[6]:

Rosen Dalal, Brahmanism: An Alphabetical Guide, p. 72.

[7]:

Śrīmad- Bhāgavatam/ Bhāgavata-Purāṇa, canto-9 (Liberation) chapter-21 (The dynasty of Bhārata), https://vedabase.io/en/library/sb/

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