Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 26
फलंते नैव वृक्षाश्च कदाचिदपि भारत । कन्याविक्रय कर्त्तारो गोजाविक्रयकारकाः
phalaṃte naiva vṛkṣāśca kadācidapi bhārata | kanyāvikraya karttāro gojāvikrayakārakāḥ
O Bhārata, zuweilen werden die Bäume überhaupt keine Früchte tragen; und es wird solche geben, die Jungfrauen verkaufen, und solche, die mit dem Verkauf von Kühen ja sogar von Kindern Handel treiben.
Sūta (deduced; vocative ‘bhārata’ suggests addressing a Bharata-descendant listener; exact speaker not in snippet)
Listener: Bhārata (addressed)
Scene: A barren grove with leafless or fruitless trees; a distressed mother and child near a marketplace where shadowy traders bargain; a sage raises a hand in prohibition, embodying dharma’s protest.
FAQs
Adharma leads to exploitation of the vulnerable and disharmony in nature; dharma protects dependents and honors life as sacred.
No tīrtha is glorified in this verse.
None; the verse is a moral condemnation and a Kali-yuga portent.