Taḍāga

Taḍāga, “the tank”

Grammar: masculine noun; also written tadāga.

Meaning: a tank.

In the scriptures: Building a taḍāga and the like is one of the three chief pūrta karmas. One who builds a new taḍāga, or rebuilds an old one as new, uplifts his whole kula and is established in svargaloka (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Madhyama Parva, Bhāga 1, Chapter 9). A taḍāga should be built at a devasthāna, and those larger than two thousand hastas must receive pratishṭhā by vidhi; one who builds without pūjā of the Vāstu devatā has half his puṇya destroyed by Yamarāja (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Madhyama Parva, Bhāga 1, Chapters 10–11).

In the pratishṭhā of a tadāga, Brahmā is the principal devatā (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Madhyama Parva, Bhāga 2, Chapters 17–18). Images of Varuṇa with nāgas, makara and kacchapa are released into it, a wooden yūpa equal to the height of the yajamāna is fixed in the īśāna direction, its water is given to brāhmaṇas as dakshiṇā, and the yajamāna drinks it (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Madhyama Parva, Bhāga 2, Chapters 19–21).

For as many hair-pores as are on a cow’s body, for so many divine years the builder of a tank lives in svarga. His seven kulas are raised when cows drink its water, and when a heated traveller drinks and rests under its trees, the consecrator raises his mother’s and father’s kulas. As long as the tank stands and his fame spreads, he enjoys svarga. So one should earn wealth justly and have tanks built (Bhavishya Purāṇa, Uttara Parva, Chapters 127–129).

Sources

• Bhavishya Purāṇa, Madhyama Parva, Bhāga 1, Chapters 9–11; Bhāga 2, Chapters 17–21; Uttara Parva, Chapters 127–129