Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 22
आदेशं पठते यस्तु राजद्वारे तु मानवः । सोऽपि देवि भवेद्वृक्ष ऊषरे कंटकावृतः । स्थितो वै नृपतिद्वारि यः कुर्याद्वेदविक्रयम्
ādeśaṃ paṭhate yastu rājadvāre tu mānavaḥ | so'pi devi bhavedvṛkṣa ūṣare kaṃṭakāvṛtaḥ | sthito vai nṛpatidvāri yaḥ kuryādvedavikrayam
ข้าแต่เทวี บุรุษผู้สวดประกาศ (‘อาเทศะ’) ณ ประตูพระราชา ย่อมกลายเป็นต้นไม้ในดินเค็มกันดาร ถูกหนามปกคลุม; ฉันใด ผู้ยืน ณ ประตูหลวงแล้วค้าขายพระเวท ก็ย่อมประสบชะตาเช่นนั้นฉันนั้น
Unknown (within Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya dialogue; addressed to ‘Devi’)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Devī
Scene: A royal gateway scene: a man recites proclamations before guards and courtiers; beside him a Veda-scroll is weighed like merchandise. In the karmic aftermath vignette, he appears as a thorn-covered tree in a white, salt-crusted wasteland.
FAQs
Sacred knowledge must not be commercialized; treating the Veda as a commodity leads to spiritual downfall.
Prabhāsa Kṣetra is the broader setting (Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya), though this verse focuses on dharma rather than a single sub-tīrtha.
No ritual is prescribed here; it is an ethical prohibition against veda-vikraya (selling the Veda).