Shloka 22

Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: On the Superiority of Giving

Maitreya–Vyāsa Exemplum

Devanagari script

देवार्थ पितृयज्ञार्थमन्नं श्रद्धाउ55हतं मया । न दत्तमर्थकामेन देयमन्नं पुरा किल,पूर्वजन्ममें मैं देवताओं और पितरोंके यजनके लिये श्रद्धापूर्वक अन्न एकत्र करता; परंतु धन-संग्रहकी कामनासे उस देनेयोग्य अन्नका भी दान नहीं करता था

Transliteration

devārthaṁ pitṛyajñārtham annaṁ śraddhayā ujjhitaṁ mayā | na dattam arthakāmena deyam annaṁ purā kila ||

Translation

پچھلے جنم میں میں دیوتاؤں کی نذر اور پِتروں کے یَجْن کے لیے عقیدت سے اناج جمع کرتا تھا؛ مگر دولت کی حرص میں، جو اناج دینے کے لائق تھا، اس کا بھی دان نہیں کرتا تھا۔

Word by Word

देव-अर्थम्for the sake of the gods

पितृ-यज्ञ-अर्थम्for the sake of the ancestral sacrifice

अन्नम्food, grain

श्रद्धा-उपहतम्accompanied/impelled by faith; done with श्रद्धा

मयाby me

नnot

दत्तम्given (was not given)

अर्थ-कामेनby desire for wealth and pleasure; out of greed

देयम्to be given, fit to be donated

अन्नम्food (the food that should be given)

पुराformerly, earlier

किलindeed, it is said

Speaker

कीट उवाच

Characters & Entities

devas (gods)

pitṛs (ancestors)

anna (food/grain)

śraddhā (faith)

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Merely setting aside resources for sacred purposes is not enough; withholding what is meant to be given—out of greed—violates dāna-dharma and leads to adverse karmic results.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker (the ‘kīṭa’) confesses a past-life fault: he collected food for offerings to gods and ancestors but, motivated by desire for wealth, failed to donate even the portion that should have been given away.