Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 53
स्वोदरं भर यः सर्वे पशुपक्षिमृगादयः । स एव धन्यः संसारे यः परार्थोद्यतः सदा
svodaraṃ bhara yaḥ sarve paśupakṣimṛgādayaḥ | sa eva dhanyaḥ saṃsāre yaḥ parārthodyataḥ sadā
மாடு, பறவை, மிருகம் முதலிய அனைத்தும் தம் வயிற்றையே நிரப்புகின்றன; ஆனால் இவ்வுலகில் எப்போதும் பிறர் நலனுக்கே முயல்வோனே உண்மையில் பாக்கியவன்.
Tapodhana sage (his moral maxim), within Skanda’s Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration (deduced)
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis (frame) / audience within narrative
Scene: A didactic tableau: animals and birds feeding themselves in the foreground, contrasted with a human devotee offering food/water to others near a Kāśī ghat, illustrating the verse’s moral contrast.
FAQs
Human life is distinguished from mere survival by parārtha—consistent effort for others’ welfare—making one truly “dhanya” (blessed).
No specific tīrtha is named; the verse contributes to Kāśī’s Mahātmya by teaching the dharma expected in a sacred city.
None explicitly; the prescription is ethical: sustained altruistic action (parārthodyama).