ÿþ<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>D&#256N (Skt. d&#257n&#257 from the root d&#257 'to give')</TITLE> <style type="text/css"> .BODY { background-color: #EAF1F7; background-image: url('images/gtbh.jpg'); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-attachment: fixed; background-position: center; color: #0066CC;} .C1{text-align: justify;color: #0066CC;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .BIB{text-align: center;color: #000099;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} .CONT{text-align: right;color: #FF0000;FONT-size: SMALL;FONT-family: Tahoma;} </style><META NAME="keywords" CONTENT="DN"> <META http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8"></HEAD> <BODY class="BODY" oncontextmenu="return false" ondragstart="return false" onselectstart="return false"> <FONT ALIGN="JUSTIFY" FACE="Tahoma"> <p class="C1">&#65279D&#256N (Skt. <i>d&#257n&#257</i> from the root <i>d&#257</i> 'to give') means the act of giving or that which is given either as charity or alms or as offering, fee or reward for spiritual instruction received or for religious rite or ritual performed. The latter, however, is more appropriately called <i>dak&#7779i&#7751&#257. D&#257n</i> (charity or alms-giving), according to the Br&#257hma&#7751ical code as well as the code of Manu, is a means of earning spiritual merit, and is thus a religious obligation and may not necessarily be the result of a feeling of compassion or pity, though the humanitarian motive cannot be completely excluded from the concept of <i>d&#257n</i>. The mode of <i>d&#257n</i> and the selection of person worthy of receiving it may, however, differ. For example, a Br&#257hma&#7751, according to Hindu tradition, retains preferential status as a fit recipient of <i>d&#257n</i>. Next come wandering ascetics, and then ordinary beggars seeking alms. Orphans, widows and destitutes are also considered to be deserving of sympathy and help. According to Hindu texts, K&#7779atr&#299yas and Vai&#347yas are expressly forbidden to receive <i>d&#257n, </i> while "all mendicants subsist through subsistence afforded by householders, " and "for the Br&#257hmach&#257r&#299s (celibate students) not to beg alms is a sin, " for it is their "special duty to beg alms for their teacher. " On the other hand, most unworthy recipients of d&#257n are the criminals, drunkards, gamblers and other evil-doers. There are unworthy donors too, such as prostitutes, gamblers and bandits.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Buddhism and Jainism laid great stress on compassion and liberality, but they rejected the claims of Br&#257hma&#7751s as special recipients of alms. The <i>J&#257taka</i> literature celebrates the virtue of giving; the Boddhisattva gives away everything - his wealth, clothes, food, his own body and even the religious merit he may have accumulated. But both Buddhist and Jain monks themselves depend for their subsistence on the alms and donations from the laity. The householders are therefore enjoined to give alms to the monks and to donate liberally for the upkeep of monasteries and other charitable institutions.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The word <i>d&#257n</i> as well as the concept has been assimilated into the Sikh tradition. Though there exist no codified injunctions about it, the practice of <i>d&#257n</i> is a significant feature of the Sikh way of life. The emphasis here is more on giving than on receiving. No fixed group or class of people is specified as favoured recipients of <i>d&#257n</i>. Nor is any particular commodity out of material belongings considered especially sanctified for purposes of <i>d&#257n</i>. However, whatever is given away in <i>d&#257n</i> must have been earned by one's honest labour. Says Gur&#363 N&#257nak : "He, O N&#257nak, who himself lives by his honest labour and yet gives away something out of his hands, has alone found the (true) way" (GG, 1245). There are numerous other verses in the Gur&#363 Granth S&#257hib extolling the virtue of <i>d&#257n</i>. Also from Gur&#363 N&#257nak, "He alone realizes the truth who is truly instructed, who is compassionate towards all living beings and who dispenses <i>d&#257n</i>" (GG, 468). A <i>gurmukh</i> or true devotee is advised to practise "n&#257m (remembrance of the Divine Name), <i>d&#257n</i> and <i>isn&#257n</i> (holy bathing)" (GG, 942). Gur&#363 Arjan, N&#257nak V : "Meditate on the Lord's Name, listen to the Lord's Name being recited and to all render <i>d&#257n</i>" (GG, 135). For himself Gur&#363 N&#257nak seeks the <i>d&#257n</i>"of the dust from underneath the feet of the holy ones which, if obtained, to my forehead would I apply" (GG, 468). In the words of Gur&#363 Arjan: "The most desirable boon to beg for is to beg of the Gur&#363 love of singing the Lord's laudation" (GG, 1018). In his daily <i>ard&#257s</i> or supplicatory prayer, the highest form of <i>d&#257n</i> (<i>d&#257n&#257&#7749 sir d&#257n</i>) a Sikh seeks is the <i>n&#257m-d&#257n</i>, gift of God's Name.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Sikhism does not countenance renunciation of material goods, nor does it deprecate worldly callings. The popular aphorism <i>kirt karn&#299, n&#257m jap&#7751&#257, va&#7751&#7693 chhak&#7751&#257</i> (to earn one's living by the labour of one's hands, to repeat the Name of God and to eat only after sharing with the others one's victuals) forms an essential part of its ethical code. Whereas <i>d&#257n</i> of material goods is commended, one overriding implication is that what is given away has been acquired through honourable means. Another requisite is that <i>d&#257n</i> must be given with a willing heart. It should be the result of a spontaneous urge for an humanitarian act. As Gur&#363 A&#7749gad, N&#257nak II, says, "Giving under compulsion earns no merit nor does it benefit anyone ; excellent is the deed, O N&#257nak, which is performed with pleasure" (GG, 787). Another shade especially stressed in the Sikh tradition is that <i>d&#257n</i> be proffered in all humility and in an utterly selfless spirit. It should not create a sense of pride or ego in the mind of one who gives. Ego (<i>haumai</i>) vitiates the act of charity. Says Gur&#363 Te<u>gh</u> Bah&#257dur: "If one performing pilgrimages, observing fasts and giving <i>d&#257n</i> nourishes in his mind a sense of pride, all such acts remain fruitless like the bathing of an elephant (who casts dust over his body after bath)" (GG, 1428). To dispense <i>d&#257n</i>, one need not necessarily be affluent. A simple meal served by an humble labourer to a casual guest is more meritorious than a sumptuous feast given by a rich man to professional mendicants.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In the Sikh tradition, all <i>d&#257n</i> or offering is in the name of the Gur&#363 and, usually, through <i>golak</i> (treasure, or receptacle kept in a <i>gurdw&#257r&#257</i> for the devotees' offerings) of the Gur&#363 or the Panth representing the Gur&#363. The channels for <i>d&#257n</i> to flow into the Gur&#363's treasury are by now well established. First, the dictum <i><u>gh</u>ar&#299b k&#299 rasn&#257, Gur&#363 k&#299 golak</i> (a destitute's tongue, i. e. mouth, is the Gur&#363's till) sets the general principle that the primary object of charity is to feed the needy. This is done through the systematized and organized institution known as Gur&#363 k&#257 La&#7749gar. The second institutionalized channel for <i>d&#257n</i> is <i>dasvandh</i> (lit. tithes) or one-tenth of his earning a Sikh is required to set apart for the welfare of the community. Contributions may be made at any recognized centre - the local <i>gurdw&#257r&#257</i>, any historical shrine, an orphange, school, charitable hospital, and the like.</p> <p class="C1">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In the <i>ard&#257s</i> or Sikhs' daily prayer are listed the categories of <i>d&#257n</i> a Sikh supplicates for. The primary one is the <i>d&#257n</i> or gift of the Holy Name. He prays, besides, for the <i>d&#257n</i> of the ideal Sikh way of life, the <i>d&#257n</i> of true Sikh conduct and discipline, the <i>d&#257n</i> of unfaltering faith in Sikh principles, the <i>d&#257n</i> of unflinching trust in the Gur&#363, the <i>d&#257n</i> of company of pious Sikhs, the <i>d&#257n</i> of pilgrimage to the Harimandar at Amritsar and other sacred places, and the <i>d&#257n</i> of holy bath at Amritsar. The gifts that a Sikh supplicates for are for the whole community and not for himself alone. This sharing of blessing is part of the Sikh way of life.</p> </font> <p class="BIB"> BIBLIOGRAPHY<p class="C1"><ol class="C1"><li class="C1"> Sher Singh, <i>The Philosophy of Sikhism</i>. Lahore, 1944<BR> <li class="C1"> Avtar Si&#7749gh, <i>Ethics of the Sikhs</i>. Patiala, 1970<BR> <li class="C1"> Nripinder Singh, <i>The Sikh Moral Tradition</i>. Delhi, 1990<BR> </ol><p class="CONT">T&#257ran Si&#7749gh<br></p><BR> </font> <img src="counter.aspx" width="1px" height="1px" alt=""> </HTML></BODY>