Shloka 25
Pānīya-dāna and Anna-dāna: The Primacy of Life-Sustaining Gifts (पानीयदान-प्रशंसा / अन्नदान-प्रशंसा)
अन्न प्राणा नराणां हि सर्वमन्ने प्रतेष्ठितम् । अन्नदः पशुमान् पुत्री धनवान् भोगवानपि
nārada uvāca | annaṃ prāṇā narāṇāṃ hi sarvam anne pratiṣṭhitam | annadaḥ paśumān putrī dhanavān bhogavān api, nareśvara |
قال نارادا: «إنّ الطعام هو حقًّا نَفَسُ الحياة للناس؛ وكلُّ شيءٍ قائمٌ على الطعام. لذلك، يا أيها الملك، من يُعطِ الطعام ينل الماشيةَ والبنينَ والمالَ واللذّات أيضًا. وفي العالم يُعَدّ الرجل الذي يُطعم الناس مُعطيَ الحياة، بل يُقال عنه إنه مُعطي كلِّ شيء.»
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Food sustains life and underlies all human activity; therefore, donating food (annadāna) is among the highest forms of charity, equated with giving life itself and bringing broad worldly and moral rewards.
Nārada addresses a king and instructs him on the ethical greatness of giving food, explaining that since all beings depend on food, the donor of food is honored as a life-giver and gains prosperity and lineage.