[2] The donor performs an archana (worship ritual), and utters a mantra praising the lord Hiranya garbha, that is, Vishnu.
The donor utters a mantra announcing a "rebirth" from the divine womb, and is called "born of the hiranya garbha".
The great gifts are also described in the later digests devoted to the topic of charity (dāna), such as Ballala's Dana-sagara, and the Danakhanda section of Hemadri's Chaturvarga-chintamani (13th century).
[6] The 7th century Pandya king Jayantavarman (alias Cendan), according to one of his inscriptions, performed three of the great gifts: hiranyagarbha, gosahasra, and tulapursuha.
[8] In particular, hiranyagarbha finds a mention in multiple historical inscriptions of Indian kings, including:[9] The ruler of Travancore used the ritual to raise his caste status to that of a Kshatriya.