Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 76
प्रजासु च विरक्तासु राज्यकामदुघासु वै । कृच्छ्रेणोपार्जितोऽपार्थो राजशब्दो भविष्यति
prajāsu ca viraktāsu rājyakāmadughāsu vai | kṛcchreṇopārjito'pārtho rājaśabdo bhaviṣyati
Kapag ang mga tao’y nanlamig ang loob—bagaman ang kaharian ay parang inahing baka na nagbibigay ng lahat ng ninanais—ang pamagat na “hari,” kahit pinaghirapan, ay nagiging hungkag at walang saysay.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Scene: A solitary king on a throne whose insignia (crown, parasol) appear heavy and fading, while the people turn away; the city of Kāśī glows in the background, suggesting a higher, enduring sovereignty of dharma.
FAQs
Authority without the goodwill and welfare of the people becomes empty; dharma sustains kingship.
The verse is within Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s Kashi framework, but this specific line teaches rāja-dharma rather than naming a particular tīrtha.
None explicitly; it is an ethical instruction on governance and duty.