Previous Verse
Next Verse

Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 56

Dāna-dharma: Types of Charity, Worthy Recipients, Vrata-Timings, and Śiva–Viṣṇu Propitiation

दानधर्मात् परो धर्मो भूतानां नेह विद्यते / तस्माद् विप्राय दातव्यं श्रोत्रियाय द्विजातिभिः

dānadharmāt paro dharmo bhūtānāṃ neha vidyate / tasmād viprāya dātavyaṃ śrotriyāya dvijātibhiḥ

Đối với muôn loài trong đời này, không có pháp nào cao hơn pháp bố thí. Vì thế, hàng “nhị sinh” nên dâng tặng cho Bà-la-môn—đặc biệt cho vị śrotriya, người thông Veda và an trú trong kỷ luật thánh.

dāna-dharmātfrom the duty of giving/charity
dāna-dharmāt:
Apādāna (अपादान)
TypeNoun
Rootdāna (प्रातिपदिक) + dharma (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग) (head: dharma), Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular (एकवचन)
paraḥhigher/superior
paraḥ:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootpara (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); predicate adjective qualifying ‘dharmaḥ’
dharmaḥduty/righteousness
dharmaḥ:
Karta (कर्ता)
TypeNoun
Rootdharma (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)
bhūtānāmof beings
bhūtānām:
Sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
TypeNoun
Rootbhūta (प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural (बहुवचन)
nanot
na:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootna (अव्यय)
FormNegation particle (निषेधार्थक अव्यय)
ihahere/in this world
iha:
Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootiha (अव्यय)
FormAdverb of place (देशवाचक अव्यय)
vidyateexists/is found
vidyate:
Kriya (क्रिया)
TypeVerb
Root√vid (विद् धातु)
FormPresent tense (लट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद)
tasmāttherefore/from that
tasmāt:
Hetu/Apādāna (हेतु/अपादान)
TypeNoun
Roottad (तद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
FormPronoun (सर्वनाम), Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular (एकवचन), Masculine/Neuter form
viprāyato a learned Brahmin
viprāya:
Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
TypeNoun
Rootvipra (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular (एकवचन)
dātavyamshould be given
dātavyam:
Vidhi (विधि/कर्तव्यता)
TypeVerb
Root√dā (दा धातु)
FormGerundive/obligatory participle (तव्यत्), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); impersonal obligation
śrotriyāyato a Veda-learned (Brahmin)
śrotriyāya:
Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
TypeNoun
Rootśrotriya (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular (एकवचन)
dvijātibhiḥby the twice-born (people)
dvijātibhiḥ:
Karana (करण) / Agent-instrument (कर्तृकरणभाव)
TypeNoun
Rootdvi-jāti (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)

Lord Kūrma (Viṣṇu) instructing on dharma

Primary Rasa: vira

Secondary Rasa: shanta

K
Kūrma
V
Viṣṇu
V
Vipra
Ś
Śrotriya
D
Dvija

FAQs

Indirectly: it frames dāna as the highest dharma for embodied beings, implying that spiritual maturity (rooted in dharma) supports inner purification that makes realization of the Self possible.

No specific technique is taught here; the verse emphasizes ethical preparation—dāna and right giving to worthy recipients—which functions as a purifying discipline that supports later Yoga and devotion in the Kurma Purana’s broader teaching.

It does not explicitly discuss Śiva–Viṣṇu unity; it presents a shared dharmic foundation (dāna and worthy giving) that underlies the Purana’s broader Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis.