Agni Purana — Veda-vidhana & Vamsha, Shloka 20
Dānādi-māhātmya — The Glory of Gifts, Manuscript-Donation, and Purāṇic Transmission
इन्द्रद्युम्नप्रसङ्गेन दद्यात्तद्धेमकूर्मवत् त्रयोदशसहस्राणि मात्स्यं कल्पादितो ऽब्रवीत्
indradyumnaprasaṅgena dadyāttaddhemakūrmavat trayodaśasahasrāṇi mātsyaṃ kalpādito 'bravīt
ଇନ୍ଦ୍ରଦ୍ୟୁମ୍ନ ପ୍ରସଙ୍ଗରେ ସେହି ଦାନକୁ ସୁବର୍ଣ୍ଣ କଚ୍ଛପ ଭଳି ବିଧିପୂର୍ବକ ଦେବା ଉଚିତ; ମତ୍ସ୍ୟପୁରାଣ କଳ୍ପ-ପ୍ରକରଣରୁ ଆରମ୍ଭ କରି କହିଛି ଯେ ତାହାର ଫଳ ତେର ହଜାର (ଗୁଣ) ଅଟେ।
Lord Agni (narrating within the Agni Purana’s instructional discourse)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Vrata","secondary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","practical_application":"Perform Indradyumna-prasaṅga-linked dāna by offering a ‘hema-kūrma’ (golden tortoise) and associated dakṣiṇā, relying on Matsya-purāṇa’s stated merit-count.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Commentary","entry_title":"Indradyumna-prasaṅga: Hema-kūrma dāna and Matsya merit-count","lookup_keywords":["indradyumna","hema-kūrma","matsya-purāṇa","trayodaśa-sahasra","kalpa"],"quick_summary":"Linking the rite to the Indradyumna episode, donate a golden tortoise; Matsya-purāṇa (Kalpa section onward) assigns it a merit value of thirteen thousand units."}
Alamkara Type: Itihāsa-purāṇa-prasaṅga (allusive exemplum)
Concept: Dharma is stabilized by pramāṇa (Purāṇic testimony) and by kathā-linked observance; material offering becomes meaningful through narrative sanction.
Application: When performing dāna, cite/remember the prasaṅga (Indradyumna) and follow the specified form (golden tortoise) and declared phala.
Khanda Section: Dāna-vidhi (Charity, gifts, and their merits)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A donor offers a gleaming golden tortoise to a brāhmaṇa while a narrator gestures to a Matsya-purāṇa manuscript opened at the Kalpa section, with ‘13,000’ merit symbolized by counted beads or coin stacks.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: storyteller-sage pointing to a palm-leaf Matsya text, donor presenting a radiant hema-kūrma on a tray, stylized number motifs as bead-strings, temple veranda setting.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: central golden tortoise with heavy gold embossing, brāhmaṇa recipient with halo, side panel showing open grantha labeled ‘Matsya—Kalpa’, ornate pillars and lamps.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: didactic layout—golden tortoise on ritual plate, scribe holding manuscript, neat depiction of counted ‘trayodaśa-sahasra’ as tally marks/beads, soft pastel palette.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature: patron in court gifting a gold tortoise, munshi reading from a manuscript, attendants counting stacks to signify 13,000 merit, intricate carpet and garden pavilion."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Shankarabharanam","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: दद्यात्तत् = दद्यात् + तत्; कल्पादितोऽब्रवीत् = कल्पादितः + अब्रवीत् (विसर्ग-लोप/सन्धि).
Related Themes: Agni Purāṇa 271.19–23 (series on viṣuva/animal-form dānas and Purāṇa-grantha-dāna)
FAQs
It prescribes a specific form of dāna—giving a “golden tortoise” (hema-kūrma) as a ritually significant gift—framed through the Indradyumna narrative and supported by Purāṇic authority.
It demonstrates the text’s catalog-like method: it lists a particular donation type, quantifies its merit, and cross-references another Purāṇa (Matsya) and its Kalpa/ritual section—showing Agni Purāṇa’s compendium style across ritual, narrative, and intertextual citation.
The verse links a defined charitable act to a stated magnitude of puṇya (merit), implying that properly performed dāna—validated by revered precedent—yields substantial karmic benefit and purification.