Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 35
नार्थिनः प्रार्थितैरर्थैः कृतार्था हि मया कृताः । देहिदेहीति जल्पाको भविष्याम्यन्यजन्मनि
nārthinaḥ prārthitairarthaiḥ kṛtārthā hi mayā kṛtāḥ | dehidehīti jalpāko bhaviṣyāmyanyajanmani
অর্থীরা যে বস্তু প্রার্থনা করেছিল, তা দিয়ে আমি তাদের তৃপ্ত করিনি। তাই অন্য জন্মে আমি ‘দাও, দাও’ বলে কাতরানো ভিক্ষুক হব।
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya; karmic warning in first-person)
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Scene: A wealthy householder turns away a supplicant; the scene dissolves into a future-life vision where the same person, now poor, pleads ‘dehi dehi’ at a doorway—set against Kāśī’s lanes and ghats.
FAQs
Withholding help from those in need rebounds as future dependence; generosity safeguards dignity across births.
The verse is part of Kāśī-kṣetra instruction, emphasizing dharma suitable for pilgrims and householders in the sacred city.
A moral prescription: satisfy supplicants with requested aid; it functions as dāna-dharma rather than a formal ritual.