Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 36
राज्ञा चैव यतो देयं भृत्यानां भोजनं विभो । तन्ममाचक्ष्व देवेश दयां कृत्वा ममोपरि
rājñā caiva yato deyaṃ bhṛtyānāṃ bhojanaṃ vibho | tanmamācakṣva deveśa dayāṃ kṛtvā mamopari
ഹേ വിഭോ! രാജാവിന് ഭൃത്യർക്കും ആശ്രിതർക്കും ആഹാരം നൽകേണ്ടത് കടമയായതിനാൽ, ഹേ ദേവേശാ! എന്നോടു കരുണ കാണിച്ച് ഇത് വ്യക്തമായി പറയുക।
Unspecified petitioner (listener in the dialogue), addressing Devēśa
Type: kshetra
Listener: Brahmā/Devēśa
Scene: The rākṣasa addresses the deity-like elder as Devēśa, emphasizing the king’s obligation to feed dependents; the posture is pleading, with a compassionate, instructive presence opposite him.
FAQs
Rulership is a dharmic trust: a king must sustain dependents, and humility before the divine is praised.
The verse sits within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya framework; this snippet emphasizes dharma within a pilgrimage narrative rather than naming a single tirtha.
A social-dharmic prescription: providing food/maintenance (bhojana-dāna) to servants and dependents.