Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 108
रहस्यानां रहस्यं तु गोपनीयं प्रयत्नतः । नास्तिकाय न दातव्यं न च पापरताय च
rahasyānāṃ rahasyaṃ tu gopanīyaṃ prayatnataḥ | nāstikāya na dātavyaṃ na ca pāparatāya ca
Inilah rahsia di antara segala rahsia, wajib dipelihara dengan penuh waspada. Jangan diberikan kepada orang yang tidak beriman, dan jangan pula kepada mereka yang tenggelam dalam dosa.
Śiva
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Devī
Scene: A solemn moment: Śiva lowers his voice, indicating secrecy; Devī listens intently. The environment suggests a sanctum-like privacy—dim lamps, closed pavilion, manuscript wrapped in cloth—symbolizing guarded rahasya.
FAQs
Sacred knowledge requires adhikāra (fitness); it must be protected from disbelief and immoral living.
The verse is part of Prabhāsa-kṣetra’s māhātmya discourse, linking right transmission to the sanctity of the place.
A prescription of restraint: do not transmit the rahasya to nāstikas or pāpa-ratas.