Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 18
Yamapatha (The Road of Yama), Dāna-Phala, and the Imperishable Fruition of Karma
अन्नदास्तु मुनुश्रेष्ट भुंजंतः स्वादु यांति वै । नीरदा यांति सुखिनः पिबंतः क्षीरमुत्तममम् । तक्रदा दधिदाश्चैव तत्तद्भोगं लभंति वै । घृतदा मधुदाश्चैव क्षीरदाश्च द्विजोत्तम ॥ १८ ॥
annadāstu munuśreṣṭa bhuṃjaṃtaḥ svādu yāṃti vai | nīradā yāṃti sukhinaḥ pibaṃtaḥ kṣīramuttamamam | takradā dadhidāścaiva tattadbhogaṃ labhaṃti vai | ghṛtadā madhudāścaiva kṣīradāśca dvijottama || 18 ||
O best of sages, those who give food indeed come to enjoy sweet meals. Those who give water go happily, drinking excellent milk. Those who give buttermilk and those who give curd obtain enjoyment of those very things. Likewise, O best of twice-born, givers of ghee, givers of honey, and givers of milk attain the enjoyment corresponding to their gifts.
Narada (teaching a brahmin/sage interlocutor in the dāna-phala context)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It teaches the dāna-phala principle: gifts offered with dharmic intent return as corresponding enjoyments and well-being, reinforcing charity as a concrete means of accruing puṇya.
While not explicitly naming a deity, it supports bhakti-informed dharma: serving living beings through annadāna and jaladāna is a devotional expression, and the Purana links such service with auspicious spiritual outcomes.
Ritual ethics (dharma-śāstra orientation) is emphasized: selecting sattvic gifts like food, water, milk, curd, ghee, and honey and understanding their stated phala (result) as part of practiced religious discipline.