Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 99
मकरस्थेऽपि संक्रांतौ कृशरान्नं ददाति न । तिलान्सुवर्णं तारं वा वस्त्रं वा फलमेव च । शाकपत्रं स पुष्पं वा न ददाति तथेंधनम्
makarasthe'pi saṃkrāṃtau kṛśarānnaṃ dadāti na | tilānsuvarṇaṃ tāraṃ vā vastraṃ vā phalameva ca | śākapatraṃ sa puṣpaṃ vā na dadāti tatheṃdhanam
മകരസംക്രാന്തിയിലും അവൻ കൃശരാന്നം ദാനം ചെയ്യുന്നില്ല. എള്ള്, സ്വർണം, വെള്ളി, വസ്ത്രം, ഫലം—ഒന്നും നൽകുന്നില്ല; ശാകപത്രം, പുഷ്പം, ഇന്ധനം പോലും നൽകുന്നില്ല.
Unspecified narrator within Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa (deduced from section context)
Tirtha: Vastrāpatha (Prabhāsa-kṣetra)
Type: kshetra
Listener: nṛpottama
Scene: Makara-saṅkrānti setting: sun motif entering Capricorn; a brāhmaṇa refuses to give; nearby, baskets of sesame, cloth, fruits, flowers, and firewood remain untouched while supplicants and cows wait; the narrator frames it as a moral failure.
FAQs
A life without dāna (charity)—even of simple items—is criticized; sacred times like Saṅkrānti are meant for generosity and merit.
The instruction is embedded in the Vastrāpathakṣetra-māhātmya of Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa, aligning righteous giving with the sanctity of the Prabhāsa sacred region.
Saṅkrānti-time dāna: offering kṛśara food and gifts such as sesame, gold/silver, cloth, fruits, flowers, greens, and fuel.