Shloka 1
Matsya Purana — The Rite and Glory of Meru-Dāna: The Tenfold ‘Gift of Meru’ and Mountain-Offe...
*नारद उवाच भगवञ्छ्रोतुमिच्छामि दानमाहात्म्यमुत्तमम् यदक्षयं परे लोके देवर्षिगणपूजितम् //
*nārada uvāca bhagavañchrotumicchāmi dānamāhātmyamuttamam yadakṣayaṃ pare loke devarṣigaṇapūjitam //
Nārada said: O Blessed Lord, I wish to hear the highest glory of charity (dāna)—that which yields imperishable merit in the world beyond and is revered by the hosts of divine sages.
FAQs
This verse does not describe creation or Pralaya; it introduces a dharma topic—charity (dāna) as a source of imperishable posthumous merit (akṣaya puṇya).
It frames dāna as a foremost duty: rulers and householders are encouraged to give in ways that generate enduring merit, a theme typically expanded in subsequent verses with rules on worthy recipients, proper intent, and timing.
No explicit Vāstu/temple-building detail appears here; the ritual significance is the elevation of dāna as a major religious act whose results are described as akṣaya (imperishable).