Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 92
तपः कृते प्रशंसंति त्रेतायां ज्ञानमेव च । द्वापरे तीर्थयात्रां च दानमेव कलौ युगे
tapaḥ kṛte praśaṃsaṃti tretāyāṃ jñānameva ca | dvāpare tīrthayātrāṃ ca dānameva kalau yuge
Im Kṛta-Zeitalter wird die Askese gepriesen; im Tretā-Zeitalter allein die Erkenntnis; im Dvāpara-Zeitalter die Pilgerfahrt zu den Tīrthas; doch im Kali-Zeitalter gilt allein die Gabe, das Dāna, als das Höchste.
Durvāsā (continuing instruction)
Scene: A didactic tableau of the four yugas: ascetics in deep tapas (Kṛta), sages teaching jñāna (Tretā), pilgrims traveling to rivers/temples (Dvāpara), and householders giving charity (Kali) as the central accessible dharma.
FAQs
Dharma adapts by age: in Kali-yuga, dāna is presented as the most accessible and effective path for merit and purification.
No single site is named; the verse broadly praises tīrthayātrā in Dvāpara and elevates dāna in Kali.
It prescribes dāna (charitable giving) as the principal Kali-yuga practice.