Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 32
विप्रवेषं समास्थाय शूद्रो भूत्वा प्रतिग्रहम् । तृणकाष्ठसमं वापि प्रतिगृह्य पतत्यधः
vipraveṣaṃ samāsthāya śūdro bhūtvā pratigraham | tṛṇakāṣṭhasamaṃ vāpi pratigṛhya patatyadhaḥ
Un śūdra qui, revêtant l’apparence d’un brāhmaṇa, se met à recevoir des dons—fût-ce quelque chose d’aussi sans valeur que de l’herbe ou du bois—tombe vers le bas (dans la ruine).
Skanda (deduced)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Scene: A man in borrowed sacred thread and brāhmaṇa attire stretches out his hand for alms; the gift is mere grass/wood, yet shadowy forces pull him downward, illustrating that deceit—not the object’s value—causes the fall.
FAQs
Religious status cannot be faked for profit; deceit in sacred contexts leads to spiritual downfall.
The warning is delivered within the Prabhāsa-kṣetra māhātmya, applying to conduct at that tīrtha.
A prohibition: do not accept gifts under false religious identity; avoid pratigrāha rooted in deception.