History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v3.c43.4

v3.c43.4

Gifts of various kinds and donors have been highly eulogised in the Ṛgveda. There are *dānastutis* (eulogies of gifts) in Ṛg. I. 125 (where the gifts made by king Svanaya son of Bhāvayavya to Kakṣīvat are praised and *dāna* in general is eulogised in verses 5-7), I. 126. 1-5 (where the same praise is continued), V. 61 (where Śyāvāśva praises the donors Taranta, Purumīḷha and Rathavīti), VI. 47. 22-25 (praise of the donor Prastoka Sārñjaya), VII. 18. 22-25 (praise of the gifts made by Sudās Paijavana), VIII. 5. 37-39 (praise of Kaśu Caidya), VIII. 6. 46-48 (praise of Tirindira Pāraśavya), VIII. 46. 21-24 (praise of Kānita), VIII. 68. 14-19, X. 62. 8-11 (praise of Sāvarṇi). Among the objects gifted the most prominent are cows. In Ṛg. I. 126. 3 Kakṣīvat represents¹⁹⁷⁴ that he received sixty thousand cows from Svanaya, along with ten chariots to each of which four bay horses were yoked and in which young girls were seated. In Ṛg. VIII. 5. 37 reference is made¹⁹⁷⁵ to the gifts of ten thousand cows and of 100 camels by Kaśu Caidya. In Ṛg. V. 30. 12 a gift of 4000 cows to Babhru by the men of king Ṛnañcaya is mentioned. Horses are also often described as objects of gift. e. g. Ṛg. V. 18. 5 (gift of 50 horses), VII. 16. 10, VIII. 46. 22 (gifts of 60000 horses, 2000 camels, 1000 bay mares and 10000 cows); VIII. 68. 17. For gifts of camels vide Ṛg. VIII. 5. 37, VIII. 46. 22. For gifts of young damsels vide Ṛg. I. 126. 3, VI. 27. 8, VII. 18. 22, VIII. 19. 36, VIII. 68. 17. The word 'vadhū' used in all these passages cannot mean that the young girls were meant to be the wives of the donees, since in some of them the 'vadhūs' gifted are as many as 10, 20 or even 50.¹⁹⁷⁶ So they were maid servants or female slaves. Ṛg. X. 117 contains an eulogy of the gift of food, the 6th verse of which is the basis of the later teaching of Manu III. 118, Viṣṇu Dh. S. 67. 43, Bhagavad-gītā 3. 13 and is as follows: 'the foolish man¹⁹⁷⁷ (who does not share with others) obtains food to no purpose; I say the truth that it is really his destruction; he does not offer food to Aryaman (i. e. to the gods) nor to his friend (or guest); one who takes food alone (without giving to others) partakes simply of sin.' This injunction was most assiduously followed at all times in India. In the Chān. Up. IV. 1-2 it is stated that Jānaśruti Pautrāyaṇa, a man of faith and very charitable, had erected everywhere shelters in order to feed at all times all people that came from all quarters. Ṛg. X. 107 (of 11 verses) is an apotheosis of dakṣiṇā (gift or sacrificial fee which generally consisted of a cow or cows), which word is repeated several times in almost every verse. Verses 2, 7 and 8 are very interesting 'Those who make gifts of dakṣiṇā (cows or fee) stand high in heaven, those who make gifts of horses stand in the world of the Sun, donors of gold secure immortality (become gods), those who give garments increase the duration of their life. Gifts endow (the donor) with horses, cows, the moon (silver?), gold, food which is the life of us and the knowing (donor) makes gifts of his armour. Donors do not die (they reach immortality in heaven), they do not go down to a low goal, they are not harmed, nor do they suffer pain; dakṣiṇā renders unto these donors this whole world and also heaven'. Ṛg. VI. 47. 23 mentions that from Divodāsa gifts of ten horses, ten boxes (i. e. chariots or boxes of gold), ten garments, in addition to dinners and ten lumps of gold were received.¹⁹⁷⁸