Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 17, Verse 20
दातव्यमिति यद्दानं दीयतेऽनुपकारिणे।देशे काले च पात्रे च तद्दानं सात्त्विकं स्मृतम्।।
dātavyam iti yad dānaṁ dīyate ‘nupakāriṇe
deśe kāle ca pātre ca tad dānaṁ sāttvikaṁ smṛtam
also searched as "datavyam iti yad danam diyate anupakarine"
Translation
Gifts given with the feeling that it is one's own duty to give, to one who makes no return, at the proper place and time to the deserving person—that is said to be sattvika.
Vāṇi's rendering
A gift given simply because giving is right — to one who cannot repay, at the right time and place — is clear.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| दातव्यम्dātavyam | ought to be given; giving is the right thing |
| इतिiti | with this thought, in this spirit |
| यत्yad | which |
| दानम्dānaṁ | gift, act of giving |
| दीयतेdīyate | is given |
| अनुपकारिणेanupakāriṇe | to one who does no service in return, who cannot repay (sandhi: dīyate + anupakāriṇe) |
| देशेdeśe | in the fitting place |
| कालेkāle | at the fitting time |
| चca | and |
| पात्रेpātre | to a worthy recipient, one who truly needs it |
| चca | and |
| तत्tad | that |
| दानम्dānaṁ | gift |
| सात्त्विकम्sāttvikaṁ | clear, luminous, untroubled by motive |
| स्मृतम्smṛtam | is held to be, is remembered as |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17 Verse 20 mean?
It names the cleanest kind of giving. You give because giving is right — not to be thanked, not to be owed. It goes to someone who cannot return the favour, at a time and place where it actually lands. Krishna calls such a gift sāttvika: clear, because no motive is clouding it.
What does datavyam iti yad danam mean?
Dātavyam iti — "this ought to be given." That is the whole reason offered. No calculation follows it, no expectation trails behind it. The giving is complete in itself. Krishna is pointing at a motive so simple it barely qualifies as a motive, and calling it the highest one.
Why does Krishna say the gift should go to someone who cannot repay?
Because repayment turns the gift into a transaction, and you stop being a giver the moment you become a creditor. Anupakāriṇe — one who does no service in return — removes that possibility entirely. What remains is the act alone, with nothing attached to it and nothing pending.
Why do place, time and recipient matter in sattvic giving?
Deśe, kāle, pātre — the right place, the right hour, the right hands. A gift that arrives late, or lands where it is not needed, has satisfied the giver rather than helped anyone. Clear giving pays attention. It asks what is actually required, not what would feel generous to offer.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Krishna measures a gift by what it cannot earn. Not the amount, not the recipient's gratitude, not the good name it buys — but whether anything at all can return to you. Give to one who can repay, and the gift is a loan with better manners. Give where nothing comes back, and giving is all that happened. Place and time matter too: the right hand, the right hour, the person who actually needs it. Arjuna is being taught to notice the invoice hidden inside his generosity. Look at your own giving. Ask what you are quietly waiting to receive.