Yoga through Discerning the Three Divisions of Faith
Verse 17.20
दातव्यमिति यद्दानं दीयतेऽनुपकारिणे।देशे काले च पात्रे च तद्दानं सात्त्विकं स्मृतम्।।17.20।।
dātavyam iti yad dānaṁ dīyate ‘nupakāriṇe deśhe kāle cha pātre cha tad dānaṁ sāttvikaṁ smṛitam
Word Meanings
dātavyam—worthy of charity; iti—thus; yat—which; dānam—charity; dīyate—is given; anupakāriṇe—to one who cannot give in return; deśhe—in the proper place; kāle—at the proper time; cha—and; pātre—to a worthy person; cha—and; tat—that; dānam—charity; sāttvikam—in the mode of goodness; smṛitam—is stated to be
Translation · English
That gift which is given to one who does nothing in return, knowing it to be a duty to give in a suitable place and time to a worthy person, is held to be Sattvic.
Deep Meaning · English
In this verse, Bhagavan Krishna elevates the act of charity (dana) from a mere social obligation to a sacred spiritual discipline. True sattvic giving is not a transactional exchange meant to secure favor or status, but a selfless recognition of the Divine in the recipient. By emphasizing 'anupakariṇe'—giving to one who cannot return the favor—Krishna strips away the ego's expectation of reciprocity, transforming the act into an expression of pure, non-dualistic love where the giver and the receiver are united in the grace of the Supreme. The conditions of place, time, and worthiness (desha, kala, patra) are not arbitrary rules, but guidelines to ensure that one's energy flows where it can nurture truth, dharma, and spiritual awakening rather than fueling dependency or ego. This is the art of giving as a yajna, where the sacrifice of one's own resources becomes an offering to the universal consciousness residing within the other. It reflects a state of inner poise where the heart is so full of sattva that it spontaneously shares, not because it is told to, but because it is the inherent nature of goodness to expand and uplift.
Sattvic charity is the selfless, unconditional offering of one's resources to a worthy cause at the right moment, performed solely as a sacred duty without expectation of return.
Connected Verses
It reinforces the foundational principle of performing duties as a yajna, without attachment to the results or the fruits of the action.
This verse warns against the degradation of charity when it is performed with expectation, highlighting the thin line between ego-driven giving and true sattvic action.
It echoes the spirit of pure devotion, where the attitude and the purity of the offering are far more significant to the Divine than the magnitude of the gift itself.
It connects charity to the broader practice of yajna, positioning the sharing of one's wealth as a discipline of self-restraint and spiritual growth.
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