Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 65
अक्षरद्वयमभ्यस्तं नास्तिनास्तीति यत्पुरा । तदिदं देहिदेहिति विपरीतमुपस्थितम्
akṣaradvayamabhyastaṃ nāstināstīti yatpurā | tadidaṃ dehidehiti viparītamupasthitam
The two-syllabled refrain once practiced was “There is not, there is not.” Now that very pair has appeared in reverse as “Give, give!”
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) addressing the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa convention)
Scene: A stylized scroll shows the words ‘नास्ति नास्ति’ fading into ‘देहि देहि’ glowing. A former miser’s mouth is shown in profile transforming from tight-lipped denial to open-handed giving before a shrine.
FAQs
Life turns the earlier denial of need (‘nāsti’) into an urgent call to generosity (‘dehi’); the wise respond by giving rather than withholding.
No site is mentioned; the verse functions as a moral maxim within the dāna discourse.
Implicitly promotes dāna (charity), though no specific item, time, or recipient-class is specified in this verse.