Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 103
यम उवाच । दानं प्रशस्तं भूम्यां च दृश्यते कर्म्मणः फलम् । स्वर्गे दानं न दातव्यं केनचित्कस्यचित्क्वचित् । तस्माद्दंड्योऽसि रे मूढ अशास्त्रीयं कृतं त्वया
yama uvāca | dānaṃ praśastaṃ bhūmyāṃ ca dṛśyate karmmaṇaḥ phalam | svarge dānaṃ na dātavyaṃ kenacitkasyacitkvacit | tasmāddaṃḍyo'si re mūḍha aśāstrīyaṃ kṛtaṃ tvayā
Yama sprach: „Gabe und Almosen sind auf Erden lobenswert, und ihre Frucht zeigt sich als Ergebnis des Karma. Doch im Himmel soll niemand irgendwem zu irgendeiner Zeit Geschenke geben. Darum bist du zu bestrafen, du Tor, denn du hast wider das Śāstra gehandelt.“
Yama
Tirtha: Kedāra (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis/audience
Scene: Yama rises slightly, pointing in admonition; the gambler recoils. The court is austere—Citragupta’s ledger open—signaling that even ‘charity’ is audited for correctness.
FAQs
Dāna must follow śāstra and proper context; otherwise even ‘good’ acts can turn into adharma with negative karmic results.
The textual frame is Kedāra (Kedārakhaṇḍa), but this verse functions as a general dharma-rule rather than a tīrtha-māhātmya.
A rule about dāna is stated: charity is appropriate on earth; ‘giving in heaven’ is declared improper in this narrative context.