Shloka 34
The Glory of Charity: Land-Gifts, Śālagrāma Donation, and Food–Water as Supreme Gifts
तांबूलं यो नरो दद्याद्भूमिं भुंक्तेऽखिलां सुखम् । स्वर्गे देवांगनाक्रोडे सुप्तस्तांबूलमत्ति वै
tāṃbūlaṃ yo naro dadyādbhūmiṃ bhuṃkte'khilāṃ sukham | svarge devāṃganākroḍe suptastāṃbūlamatti vai
ผู้ใดถวายตัมพูล (หมากพลู) ย่อมเสวยสุขทั่วแผ่นดิน; และในสวรรค์ แม้หลับอยู่บนตักนางฟ้า ก็ยังได้เสวยตัมพูลนั้นโดยแท้
Unspecified (narrative/teaching voice within Brahma-khaṇḍa context)
Concept: Even pleasure-associated gifts (tāmbūla) can be sanctified through dāna, yielding worldly happiness and heavenly delights.
Application: Give thoughtfully in social rituals—hospitality, offerings, and respectful gifts—without exploitation; recognize that desire can be disciplined into generosity.
Primary Rasa: shringara
Secondary Rasa: hasya
Type: celestial_realm
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A host offers neatly prepared tāmbūla—betel leaves, areca nut, and fragrant spices—on a silver tray to honored guests, the gesture framed as refined hospitality. The vision shifts to svarga: the donor reclines in a perfumed pavilion, resting in the lap of celestial maidens while attendants present jeweled tāmbūla boxes.","primary_figures":["donor","honored guests/brāhmaṇa recipients","apsarās (celestial maidens)","celestial attendants"],"setting":"Opulent courtyard with ritual hospitality, transitioning to a celestial pleasure pavilion with silk canopies and flowering trees.","lighting_mood":"moonlit","color_palette":["jade green","crimson red","silver white","amber gold","indigo"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: richly ornamented hospitality scene with a silver tray of tāmbūla; upper celestial register shows a jeweled pavilion, apsarās with gold jewelry, and ornate tāmbūla caskets; heavy gold leaf on textiles and ornaments, deep reds and greens.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: intimate courtly scene of offering betel with delicate hands and refined expressions; later svarga pavilion with cool indigo night, flowering trees, and lyrical sensuality rendered with restraint and fine brushwork.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: stylized figures with bold outlines; tāmbūla tray prominent; celestial panel with apsarās and patterned canopy, warm pigments and rhythmic decorative motifs.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: decorative borders of vines and betel leaves; central hospitality offering; upper field shows a celestial pavilion with attendants, peacocks, and floral motifs, deep blue background with gold highlights."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"narrative","suggested_raga":"Desh","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"emotional","sound_elements":["anklet bells (subtle)","garden night insects","soft lute (veena)","distant laughter","perfumed breeze implied by soft flute"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: bhuṃkte'khilām = bhuṅkte + akhilām (e + a → '); dadyādbhūmim = dadyāt + bhūmim (t + bh → dbh); suptastāṃbūlamatti = suptaḥ + tāṃbūlam + atti (visarga-lopa; m + a sandhi).
FAQs
It teaches the merit (puṇya) of giving tāmbūla as a form of dāna, promising worldly enjoyment and heavenly reward.
Tāmbūla is a valued item of hospitality and ritual courtesy; offering it symbolizes respectful generosity, which the text frames as spiritually meritorious.
The verse promotes generosity through small yet meaningful gifts, presenting dāna as a practical virtue that yields both social and spiritual benefit.