Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 40
प्रजानिजकुटुंबस्त्वं त्वं तु भूदेवदैवतः । महातपः सहायस्त्वं पथानान्ये तथा नृपाः
prajānijakuṭuṃbastvaṃ tvaṃ tu bhūdevadaivataḥ | mahātapaḥ sahāyastvaṃ pathānānye tathā nṛpāḥ
তুমি প্রজাদের নিজের কুটুম্বের মতো পালন কর; ব্রাহ্মণদের কাছে তুমি সত্যই দেবতুল্য। তুমি মহাতপস্বীদের সহায়, আর অন্য রাজারা কেবল লৌকিক পথের সহায়মাত্র।
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue style)
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Divodāsa
Scene: A learned brāhmaṇa or sage addresses King Divodāsa in a courtly setting, praising his familial care for subjects and reverence for brāhmaṇas; ascetics stand nearby, symbolizing royal support of tapas.
FAQs
Rajadharma is service: protecting the people, honoring brāhmaṇas, and supporting ascetic life.
No particular tīrtha is named; the verse supports the Kāśī ethos of dharma-protection.
None explicitly; it prescribes a king’s duty of support toward tapasvīs and brāhmaṇas.