Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 81

Devanagari script

फलं धर्मस्य राजानः पुष्पं धर्मस्य ब्राह्मणाः । तस्मात्पुष्पं न हिंसीत पुष्पात्संजायते फलम्

Transliteration

phalaṃ dharmasya rājānaḥ puṣpaṃ dharmasya brāhmaṇāḥ | tasmātpuṣpaṃ na hiṃsīta puṣpātsaṃjāyate phalam

Translation

Könige sind die Frucht des Dharma, Brāhmaṇas sind die Blüte des Dharma. Darum soll man die Blüte nicht verletzen, denn aus der Blüte entsteht die Frucht.

Word by Word

• phalam: fruit
• phalam: Karma/Predicative (Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• dharmasya: of dharma
• dharmasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• rājānaḥ: kings
• rājānaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• puṣpam: flower
• puṣpam: Karma/Predicative (Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• dharmasya: of dharma
• dharmasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन

• brāhmaṇāḥ: Brahmins
• brāhmaṇāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu/Apādāna (Reason/Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; “therefore”

• puṣpam: the flower
• puṣpam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• na: do not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात (negation)

• hiṃsīta: should harm
• hiṃsīta: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: hiṃs (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• puṣpāt: from the flower
• puṣpāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; अपादानार्थे (source)

• saṃjāyate: is produced/arises
• saṃjāyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam + jan (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपदम्

• phalam: fruit
• phalam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Unknown (contextual narrator within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya; likely Sūta relating the teaching)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A flowering tree labeled ‘Dharma’ with blossoms depicted as brāhmaṇas reciting; ripe fruits depicted as a king’s prosperity symbols (crown, treasury, victory banner). A hand shields blossoms from harm.

Characters & Entities

• Rājā (king)
• Brāhmaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Righteous rulership is a product of a flourishing spiritual-ethical culture; harming that culture destroys its outcomes.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The instruction belongs to Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, strengthening the dharmic identity of Prabhāsa as a sacred realm.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual; it prescribes protection and reverence toward Brāhmaṇas as a prerequisite for dharmic prosperity.