Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 8
कपे धनं तदा दत्तं सृगालोऽहं ततोऽभवम् । तस्मादेवंविधं भक्ष्यं भक्षयाम्यतिकुत्सितम्
kape dhanaṃ tadā dattaṃ sṛgālo'haṃ tato'bhavam | tasmādevaṃvidhaṃ bhakṣyaṃ bhakṣayāmyatikutsitam
Ô singe, pour n’avoir pas donné la richesse en ce temps-là, je suis devenu chacal. C’est pourquoi je mange une telle nourriture, infâme et répugnante.
Sṛgāla (jackal)
Scene: The jackal, resigned yet lucid, indicates his own scavenging as karmic necessity; the monkey listens, the pyre smoke curling like a visual metaphor for cause-and-effect across lives.
FAQs
To withhold what has been vowed as charity brings degrading karmic consequences; dharma must be enacted, not merely known.
The Setu-khaṇḍa milieu frames the moral instruction as part of Setu Māhātmya’s pilgrimage teaching.
Honoring dāna commitments—give the promised wealth without delay or evasion.