Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 100
स्तोकेनैव हि कालेन यथर्धिः परवंचनात् । अर्जिता नश्यति क्षिप्रं दक्षसंपद्गताऽशिवा
stokenaiva hi kālena yathardhiḥ paravaṃcanāt | arjitā naśyati kṣipraṃ dakṣasaṃpadgatā'śivā
En vérité, en peu de temps, la richesse acquise en trompant autrui périt vite — telle la prospérité de mauvais augure qui échut jadis à Dakṣa.
Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue style)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (general mahatmya frame)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A moral tableau: a merchant or householder counting ill-gotten coins that crumble into dust, while a shadowy memory of Dakṣa’s proud prosperity fades; Kāśī’s ghāṭs and a distant Viśveśvara spire anchor the setting.
FAQs
Prosperity gained through adharma—especially deception—cannot endure; it collapses swiftly and brings ill-omen.
The verse sits within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa context, indirectly supporting Kāśī’s dharmic framing, though this line itself is a general ethical maxim.
None explicitly; it is a dharma-nīti statement warning against paravañcanā (deceit).