Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 43
अल्पक्षीरास्तथा गावः क्षीरे सर्पिस्तथाऽल्पकम् । सर्वभक्षास्तथा विप्रा नृपा निष्करुणास्ततः । कृष्या लज्जंति वैश्याश्च शूद्रा ब्राह्मणप्रेषकाः
alpakṣīrāstathā gāvaḥ kṣīre sarpistathā'lpakam | sarvabhakṣāstathā viprā nṛpā niṣkaruṇāstataḥ | kṛṣyā lajjaṃti vaiśyāśca śūdrā brāhmaṇapreṣakāḥ
গাভী অল্প দুধ দেবে, আর দুধ থেকেও ঘি কম হবে। ব্রাহ্মণরা সর্বভক্ষী হয়ে উঠবে; রাজারা নির্দয় হবে। বৈশ্যরা কৃষিকর্মে লজ্জা বোধ করবে, আর শূদ্ররা ব্রাহ্মণদের আদেশ দিয়ে পাঠাবে।
Unspecified (Purāṇic narrator within Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya; deduced as a narrator describing Kali-yuga signs)
Scene: A composite tableau: thin cows with small milk pots; a kitchen with little ghee; brāhmaṇas eating indiscriminately at a chaotic feast; a harsh king on a throne ignoring supplicants; a merchant turning away from ploughs; a scene of brāhmaṇas being ‘sent’ on errands by domineering figures—symbolizing role inversion.
FAQs
It portrays Kali-yuga as a time when compassion, restraint, and right livelihood weaken, reminding devotees to preserve dharma through personal conduct and devotion.
No specific tīrtha is identified in this verse; it contributes to the broader narrative frame of the chapter.
None; the passage is diagnostic, not a ritual instruction.
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