thumb|170px| is any form of giving.
alt=Buddhist Dana|thumb|In Buddhist culture, (donation) is any relinquishing of ownership to a recipient without expecting anything in return.
alt=Dana|thumb|The Buddha and a monk are shown in a relief from [[Borobudur, Indonesia, making an alms round. ]]
(Devanagari: , IAST: ) is a Sanskrit and Pali word that connotes the virtue of generosity, charity or giving of alms, in Indian religions and philosophies.
In Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, is the practice of cultivating generosity. It can take the form of giving to an individual in distress or need, In other contexts, such as rituals, it can simply refer to the act of giving something. () which means fee one can afford; and (), which means alms.
is defined in traditional texts as any action of relinquishing the ownership of what one considered or identified as one's own, and investing the same in a recipient without expecting anything in return.
While is typically given to one person or family, Hinduism also discusses charity or giving aimed at public benefit, sometimes called . This aims at larger projects such as building a rest house, school, drinking water or irrigation well, planting trees, or building a care facility, among others.
Dāna in Hindu texts
The Rigveda has the earliest discussion of in the Vedas. The Rigveda relates it to "truth" and in another hymn points to the guilt one feels from not giving to those in need.
The Upanishads composed before present some of the earliest Upanishadic discussion of . Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, in verse 5.2.3, states that three characteristics of a good, developed person are self-restraint (), compassion or love for all sentient life (), and charity ().<br/>
Learn three cardinal virtues — self restraint, charity and compassion for all life.|Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, V.ii.3|
Chandogya Upanishad, Book III, similarly, states that a virtuous life requires: (asceticism), (charity), (straightforwardness), (non-injury to all sentinent beings) and (truthfulness).
Bhagavad Gita describes the right and wrong forms of in verses 17.20 through 17.22. It defines (good, enlightened, pure) charity, in verse 17.20, as that given without expectation of return, at the proper time and place, and to a worthy person. It defines (passion, ego driven, active) charity, in verse 17.21, as that given with the expectation of some return, or with a desire for fruits and results, or grudgingly. It defines (ignorant, dark, destructive) charity, in verse 17.22, as that given with contempt, to unworthy person(s), at a wrong place and time. In Book 17, Bhadwad Gita suggests steadiness in , or the good form of charity is better; and that should be avoided. These three psychological categories are referred to as the s in Hindu philosophy.
The Adi Parva of the Hindu Epic Mahabharata, in Chapter 91, states that a person must first acquire wealth by honest means, then embark on charity; be hospitable to those who come to him; never inflict pain on any living being; and share a portion with others whatever he consumes. In Chapter 87 of Adi Parva, it calls sweet speech and refusal to use harsh words or wrong others even if you have been wronged, as a form of charity. In the Vana Parva, Chapter 194, the Mahabharata recommends that one must, "conquer the mean by charity, the untruthful by truth, the wicked by forgiveness, and dishonesty by honesty". Anushasana Parva in Chapter 58, recommends public projects as a form of dāna. It discusses the building of drinking water tanks for people and cattle as a noble form of giving, as well as giving of lamps for lighting dark public spaces.
The Bhagavata Purana discusses when is proper and when it is improper. In Book 8, Chapter 19, verse 36 it states that charity is inappropriate if it endangers and cripples modest livelihood of one's biological dependents or of one’s own. Charity from surplus income above that required for modest living is recommended in the Puranas.
Hindu texts exist in many Indian languages. For example, the Tirukkuṛaḷ, written between and , is one of the most cherished classics on Hinduism written in a South Indian language. It discusses charity, dedicating Chapter 23 of Book 1 on Virtues to it. In Chapter 101, he states: "Believing wealth is everything, yet giving away nothing, is a miserable state of mind"; "Vast wealth can be a curse to one who neither enjoys it nor gives to the worthy". Like the Mahabharata, Tirukkuṛaḷ also extends the concept of charity to deeds (body), words (speech) and thoughts (mind). It states that a brightly beaming smile, the kindly light of loving eye, and saying pleasant words with sincere heart is a form of charity that every human being should strive to give.
in rituals
is also used to refer to rituals. For example, in a Hindu wedding, () refers to the ritual where a father gives his daughter's hand in marriage to the groom, after asking the groom to promise that he will never fail in his pursuit of dharma (moral and lawful life), artha (wealth) and kama (love). The groom promises to the bride's father, and repeats his promise three times in presence of all gathered as witness.
Other types of charity includes donating means of economic activity and food source. For example, (donation of a cow), () (donation of land), and or (, ): Sharing knowledge and teaching skills, (): Charity of care for the sick and diseased, (): giving freedom from fear (asylum, protection to someone facing imminent injury), and (): Giving food to the poor, needy and all visitors.
The effect of
Charity is held as a noble deed in Hinduism, to be done without expectation of any return from those who receive the charity. The texts do not recommend charity to unworthy recipients or where charity may harm or encourage injury to or by the recipient. , thus, is a dharmic act, requires an idealistic-normative approach, and has spiritual and philosophical context.
In historical record
Xuanzang, the Chinese pilgrim to India, describes many (houses of goodness, merit, charity) in his memoir. He mentions these Punyasalas and Dharmasalas in Takka (Punjab) and other north Indian places such as near the Deva temples of Haridwar at the mouth of river Ganges and eight Deva temples in Mulasthanapura. These, recorded Xuanzang, served the poor and the unfortunate, providing them food, clothing and medicine, also welcoming travelers and the destitute. So common were these, he wrote, that "travelers [like him] were never badly off."
Al-Biruni, the Persian historian, who visited and lived in India for 16 years from about , mentions the practice of charity and almsgiving among Hindus as he observed during his stay. He wrote, "It is obligatory with them (Hindus) every day to give alms as much as possible."