Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 13
गर्वावृतस्तु यो दद्याद्भयात्क्रोधात्तथैव च । भुंक्ते दानफलं तद्धि गर्भस्थो नात्र संशय
garvāvṛtastu yo dadyādbhayātkrodhāttathaiva ca | bhuṃkte dānaphalaṃ taddhi garbhastho nātra saṃśaya
Wer aber gibt, vom Stolz verhüllt—oder aus Furcht oder aus Zorn—der verzehrt wahrlich die Frucht dieser Gabe schon im Mutterleib; daran besteht kein Zweifel.
Deductive (Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya narrative voice; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa reporting a teaching)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Mahādevī (context continues from prior verse address)
Scene: A moral allegory: a proud donor with lifted chin offers a gift while shadowy figures of fear and anger cling to him; in contrast, a subtle inset shows a fetus in the womb symbolizing ‘fruit consumed early’; priests look on with grave expressions near the Prabhāsa shrine.
FAQs
The motive behind giving shapes its karmic outcome; pride, fear, or anger makes the merit short-lived and worldly.
The verse appears in Prabhāsakṣetra-māhātmya, where inner purity is emphasized alongside sacred travel.
A psychological rule for dāna: give without pride, fear, or anger to avoid diminished spiritual fruit.