Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 15
ब्रह्मोवाच । न पुण्यं केवलं राजन्गुप्तं स्वर्गस्य साधकम् । विना निष्कल्मषां कीर्ति त्रिलोकीतलविस्तृताम्
brahmovāca | na puṇyaṃ kevalaṃ rājanguptaṃ svargasya sādhakam | vinā niṣkalmaṣāṃ kīrti trilokītalavistṛtām
برہما نے فرمایا: “اے راجن! محض پُنّیہ—خصوصاً جو پوشیدہ رہ جائے—اپنے آپ سُورگ کا وسیلہ نہیں بنتا، اگر اس کے ساتھ بےداغ کیرتی نہ ہو جو تینوں لوکوں میں پھیلی ہو۔”
Brahmā (identified by ‘brahmovāca’)
Listener: Indradyumna
Scene: Brahmā explains with calm precision: a balance-scale motif of ‘puṇya’ versus ‘niṣkalmaṣā kīrti’ spanning the three worlds; the king listens, chastened.
FAQs
Purāṇic dharma values not only inner merit but also blameless, publicly beneficial conduct that becomes ‘kīrti’—a moral force in the world.
No specific tīrtha is mentioned; the verse teaches a general dharma principle relevant to kings and householders.
None; it is a doctrinal statement about the conditions supporting heavenly attainment.