Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 24
यो हीदृशीं गां ददाति देवोद्देशेन मानवः । प्रत्युताधोगतिं याति क्लिश्यते च महेश्वरि
yo hīdṛśīṃ gāṃ dadāti devoddeśena mānavaḥ | pratyutādhogatiṃ yāti kliśyate ca maheśvari
Mais l’homme qui, au nom d’une divinité, offre une vache aussi indigne, au contraire tombe dans un état inférieur et souffre, ô Maheśvarī.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Maheśvarī (Pārvatī)
Scene: A stark moral scene: a man offers an unfit cow ‘in the deity’s name’; the brāhmaṇa recoils; above, a shadowy descent motif (adhogati) contrasts with the temple’s sanctity; Pārvatī is addressed as witness.
FAQs
Invoking a deity’s name cannot sanctify an unethical act; improper giving brings suffering and decline.
Prabhāsa-kṣetra, where the text warns that wrong offerings corrupt the intended merit.
A warning: do not offer an unfit cow as a ‘deity-dedicated’ gift; it results in negative karmic fruit.