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
प्रसिद्ध तीर्थी महादान करावे, आणि मध्यम तीर्थी मध्यम दान करावे। सर्व तीर्थांत गोदान प्रशंसनीय आहे; सुवर्ण हे निष्क्रय (प्रायश्चित्त-रूप) मानले जाते। हिरण्यदान हे सर्व दानांचे प्रायश्चित्त व परिपूर्ती असे सांगितले आहे।
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.