Shloka 21
The Glory of Charity: Land-Gifts, Śālagrāma Donation, and Food–Water as Supreme Gifts
तुलापुरुषदानं यः करोति द्विजपुंगव । जनन्याश्चोदरे तस्य पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते
tulāpuruṣadānaṃ yaḥ karoti dvijapuṃgava | jananyāścodare tasya punarjanma na vidyate
O Bester der Zweimalgeborenen: Wer die heilige Gabe des Tulāpuruṣa vollzieht, wird nicht wieder im Schoß einer Mutter geboren.
Unspecified (narrative speaker within Brahma-khaṇḍa context)
Concept: Tulāpuruṣa-dāna, performed properly, is said to end rebirth (no return to a mother’s womb).
Application: Use charity as inner renunciation: give proportionately meaningful offerings, reduce attachment, and dedicate the act to Nārāyaṇa; combine with ethical living and regular devotion rather than treating dāna as a mere transaction.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A ceremonial balance scale stands at the center as a donor is symbolically ‘weighed’ against heaps of gold, grain, and cloth, then all is offered away to brāhmaṇas. Above the scene, a subtle lotus-path opens into a calm, starless expanse—signifying cessation of rebirth—while the donor’s face shifts from anxiety to serene release.","primary_figures":["donor performing tulāpuruṣa-dāna","brāhmaṇa recipients","officiating priest"],"setting":"large temple mandapa with pillars, tulā scale, donation piles, sacred fire and water vessels","lighting_mood":"golden dawn","color_palette":["warm gold","sandalwood beige","vermillion","ivory white","deep teal"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: grand mandapa with ornate pillars; central tulā scale weighing the donor, heaps of gold/grain/cloth offered to brāhmaṇas; embossed gold leaf everywhere, rich crimson and emerald garments, halos and sacred motifs; above, a lotus-shaped gateway into a tranquil void symbolizing mokṣa.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: elegant court-like mandapa; tulā scale finely detailed; brāhmaṇas receiving gifts in orderly rows; soft dawn sky with a faint lotus-ladder dissolving into pale emptiness; delicate brushwork, restrained gold accents, refined expressions of serenity.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: stylized tulā apparatus and figures with bold outlines; rhythmic arrangement of recipients; warm pigment blocks; a symbolic lotus portal above rendered as a patterned aureole, emphasizing liberation through dharmic giving.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symmetrical mandapa scene with tulā at center; decorative borders of lotuses and lamps; donors and brāhmaṇas arranged like a ritual procession; deep blue background with gold and white detailing, emphasizing auspicious completion and release."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"meditative","suggested_raga":"Bhupali","pace":"slow-meditative","voice_tone":"serene","sound_elements":["temple bells (distant)","soft conch","low chanting","silence after cadence"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: जनन्याश्चोदरे → जनन्याः + च + उदरे; पुनर्जन्म → पुनः + जन्म (अव्ययीभावसमास).
FAQs
Tulāpuruṣa-dāna is a ceremonial gift in which a person is weighed (traditionally against gold or other valuables) and an equivalent amount is donated, emphasizing large-scale charity as a purificatory act.
The verse presents an exalted fruit of dāna: freedom from rebirth. In Purāṇic ethics, extraordinary generosity is treated as a powerful purifier of karma, oriented toward release from saṃsāra.
The ethical teaching is that selfless giving—especially in a formal, accountable way—has transformative spiritual value and is portrayed as a direct support for overcoming the cycle of repeated birth.