Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 10
तच्छ्रुत्वा प्राह मांसादः कर्मनामानि पार्थिव । मिथः कृतानि संज्ञार्थमस्माभिः स्वयमेव हि
tacchrutvā prāha māṃsādaḥ karmanāmāni pārthiva | mithaḥ kṛtāni saṃjñārthamasmābhiḥ svayameva hi
L’ayant entendu, Māṃsāda dit : «Ô roi, ce sont des noms nés des actes (karma) ; nous nous les sommes attribués entre nous, nous-mêmes, comme des marques indiquant notre conduite.»
Māṃsāda (preta)
Listener: Sages (frame); immediate: king
Scene: Māṃsāda speaks with a resigned clarity, pointing to himself and the others as if assigning labels; the king listens; the forest becomes a classroom of dharma.
FAQs
Actions become one’s true ‘name’—a moral identity that follows beyond social titles and lineage.
Not specified in this verse; it supports the larger tīrthamāhātmya narrative by explaining karmic causation.
None; the focus is explanatory (why their names reflect deeds).