Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 102
प्रसिद्धे च महादानं मध्यमे चैव मध्यमम् । गोदानं सर्वतीर्थेषु सुवर्णमथ निष्क्रयः । हिरण्यदानं सर्वेषां दानानामेव निष्कृतिः
prasiddhe ca mahādānaṃ madhyame caiva madhyamam | godānaṃ sarvatīrtheṣu suvarṇamatha niṣkrayaḥ | hiraṇyadānaṃ sarveṣāṃ dānānāmeva niṣkṛtiḥ
Dans un tīrtha renommé, qu’on fasse un grand don ; dans un tīrtha moyen, un don moyen. En tous les lieux saints, le don d’une vache est loué, et l’or sert d’offrande de rachat. Le don d’or est proclamé expiation et accomplissement de tous les dons.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa
Type: kshetra
Listener: Pilgrimage-inquirer audience (r̥ṣi/śaunaka-style assembly implied)
Scene: Pilgrims at a sacred coastal kṣetra present gifts—cow, gold, and offerings—before learned brāhmaṇas and a shrine backdrop, emphasizing expiation and completion of vows.
FAQs
Giving should match the sanctity and occasion, with go-dāna universally meritorious and gold-gift serving as a powerful form of restitution.
The teaching is framed in Prabhāsa Māhātmya but applies to all tīrthas, with special emphasis on renowned sacred places.
Mahā-dāna at famous sites, moderate dāna at middling sites, go-dāna everywhere, and suvarṇa/hiraṇya-dāna as niṣkraya/niṣkṛti.