Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 10
Sāma (Sāntva) and Dāna: The Brāhmaṇa’s Conciliatory Release from a Rākṣasa
यथा हि सुकृते क्षेत्र फलं विन्दति मानव: । एवं दत्त्वा श्रुववति फलं दाता समश्ञुते
yathā hi sukṛte kṣetre phalaṁ vindati mānavaḥ | evaṁ dattvā śrutavati phalaṁ dātā samaśnute ||
Just as a man gains a harvest by sowing seed in a field well prepared, so, by giving a gift to a learned brāhmaṇa, the giver surely partakes of the merit that arises. The teaching declares that charity bears fruit not only by the act of giving, but by the worthiness and learning of the recipient, which make the gift spiritually fruitful.
मैत्रेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Charity yields its full spiritual ‘fruit’ when offered to a worthy, learned recipient—just as seed yields a harvest when sown in a well-prepared field. The donor then surely shares in the merit produced by that gift.
Maitreya is instructing about the principles of dāna (giving). He uses an agricultural analogy—prepared field and seed—to explain how giving to a śrutavat (learned) Brahmin becomes a reliable cause of beneficial results for the giver.