Shloka 32
The Glory of Charity: Land-Gifts, Śālagrāma Donation, and Food–Water as Supreme Gifts
शय्यादानं दानसारं ब्राह्मणाय ददाति यः । स याति ब्रह्मसदनं पर्य्यंके शेरते चिरम्
śayyādānaṃ dānasāraṃ brāhmaṇāya dadāti yaḥ | sa yāti brahmasadanaṃ paryyaṃke śerate ciram
Barangsiapa memberikan sedekah berupa ranjang—inti dari segala dana—kepada seorang brāhmaṇa, ia pergi ke kediaman Brahmā dan berbaring di dipan di sana untuk waktu yang lama.
Unspecified (narrative voice within Brahma-khaṇḍa context)
Concept: Supporting a brāhmaṇa with essential comfort (a bed) is exalted charity, yielding residence in Brahma’s realm.
Application: Practice thoughtful giving: donate bedding to students, priests, shelters, or guests; prioritize gifts that reduce suffering and enable study/worship.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: celestial_realm
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A humble donor presents a finely woven bed with clean linens to a serene brāhmaṇa scholar, whose blessing rises like a visible mantra. The image transitions to Brahma-loka: lotus-thrones, swan motifs, and the donor reclining on a radiant couch beneath a canopy of light.","primary_figures":["donor","brāhmaṇa recipient","Brahmā (in Brahma-loka vision)"],"setting":"Courtyard of a hermitage or temple charity hall, dissolving into a lotus-filled celestial pavilion.","lighting_mood":"golden dawn","color_palette":["ivory white","lotus pink","sunlit gold","soft saffron","sky blue"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: donor offering an ornate bed to a brāhmaṇa seated on a low platform; heavy gold leaf on textiles and halos; in the upper register, Brahma-loka with Brahmā on a lotus, swan emblems, and a jewel-studded couch.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: quiet hermitage scene with delicate textiles, minimal architecture, and gentle expressions; background opens into a dreamy lotus pavilion of Brahma-loka with pale blues and pinks, fine linework, and airy space.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: stylized brāhmaṇa and donor with bold outlines; patterned bed textiles; celestial panel showing Brahmā on lotus with swans, warm red-yellow-green pigments and rhythmic ornamentation.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: ornate border of lotuses and swans; central act of śayyā-dāna before a shrine; upper field shows lotus-world imagery, symmetrical composition, gold highlights on fabric patterns."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"narrative","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["soft chanting","rustle of cloth","temple courtyard ambience","distant bells"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: śayyādānaṃ = śayyā + dānam; dānasāraṃ = dāna + sāram; brahmasadanaṃ = brahma + sadanam; paryyaṃke normalized to paryaṅke; śerate is read as present Ātmanepada form (often plural in form).
FAQs
Śayyādāna means donating a bed (or bedding) as an act of charity, here praised as a highly meritorious gift when offered to a brāhmaṇa.
The verse presents it as a quintessential form of dāna because it directly supports comfort, rest, and well-being—symbolically and practically—thus being treated as a concentrated or exemplary act of giving.
It emphasizes generosity and supportive giving—offering useful, life-sustaining gifts to worthy recipients—while linking charitable action (dāna) to auspicious spiritual results (puṇya and attainment of Brahmā’s abode).