Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 7

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

Devanagari script

अपत्यविजयैश्वर्यस्वर्गार्थं यत् प्रदीयते / दानं तत् काम्यमाख्यातमृषिभिर्धर्मचिन्तकैः

Transliteration

apatyavijayaiśvaryasvargārthaṃ yat pradīyate / dānaṃ tat kāmyamākhyātamṛṣibhirdharmacintakaiḥ

Translation

Bố thí nào được làm với mục đích cầu con cái, chiến thắng, quyền uy, hay cõi trời, thì các bậc ṛṣi—những người suy tư về dharma—tuyên gọi là ‘kāmya-dāna’, bố thí do ham cầu quả báo.

Word by Word

• apatya-vijaya-aiśvarya-svarga-artham: for the sake of offspring, victory, power, and heaven
• apatya-vijaya-aiśvarya-svarga-artham: Prayojana (प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: apatya (प्रातिपदिक) + vijaya (प्रातिपदिक) + aiśvarya (प्रातिपदिक) + svarga (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; samāhāra-dvandva within + artha: (apatya-vijaya-aiśvarya-svarga) = offspring, victory, sovereignty, heaven; artham = for the sake of

• yat: which (gift)
• yat: Karma (कर्म) (relative-correlative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Prathamā, Ekavacana; relative pronoun referring to dānam

• pradīyate: is given
• pradīyate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + dā (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra, Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana; passive

• dānam: charity
• dānam: Karma (कर्म) / uddeśya-vastu
• Type: Noun
• Root: dāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (कर्म) (correlative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Prathamā, Ekavacana; correlative to yat

• kāmyam: wish-motivated
• kāmyam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Prathamā, Ekavacana; predicative adjective qualifying dānam

• ākhyātam: is called/declared
• ākhyātam: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā + khyā (धातु)
• Form: Kta (क्त/PPP), Napumsaka, Prathamā, Ekavacana; predicative ‘is called’

• ṛṣibhis: by sages
• ṛṣibhis: Kartṛ (कर्ता) (agent in passive, expressed instrumentally)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Bahuvacana

• dharma-cintakaiḥ: by the dharma-thinkers
• dharma-cintakaiḥ: Kartṛ (कर्ता) (agent in passive, expressed instrumentally)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक) + cintaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Bahuvacana; tatpuruṣa: dharmaṃ cintayanti iti = thinkers of dharma; in apposition to ṛṣibhis

Speaker

Traditional narration: Sage-to-sage discourse (Purāṇic narrator explaining dharma-classifications); framed within the Kurma Purana’s dharma-teaching context

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: vira

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

Indirectly: it distinguishes desire-driven action (kāmya) from dharma pursued for purification; in the Kurma Purana’s broader teaching, turning from fruit-seeking toward inner purification supports realization of the Self beyond karma-phala.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No specific technique is named; the verse supports the yogic ethic of reducing desire (kāma) and attachment to results, a foundation for steadiness of mind (citta-śuddhi) that later enables disciplined practice in the Purana’s yoga-oriented sections.

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

It does not mention them explicitly; it aligns with the Purana’s synthesis by treating dharma as a shared path of purification—service and giving can be offered with desire (kāmya) or as a higher, inwardly purifying discipline honored across Shaiva-Vaishnava frameworks.