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
اندرَدْیُمن کے واقعے کے ضمن میں وہی دان سونے کے کچھوے کی مانند طریقۂ شاستر کے مطابق دے؛ متسیہ پُران نے کلپ-پرکرن سے آغاز کرکے کہا ہے کہ اس کا پھل تیرہ ہزار (درجے) ہے۔
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.