Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 76
इदं राज्यमिमे दारा इमे पुत्रा अहं बलिः । ब्रूहि येनात्र ते कार्यं दानं मे प्रथमं व्रतम्
idaṃ rājyamime dārā ime putrā ahaṃ baliḥ | brūhi yenātra te kāryaṃ dānaṃ me prathamaṃ vratam
‘یہ میری سلطنت ہے؛ یہ میری بیویاں ہیں؛ یہ میرے بیٹے ہیں—میں بلی ہوں۔ بتائیے یہاں آپ کا کیا کام ہے؛ دان دینا میرا سب سے پہلا ورت ہے۔’
Bali
Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: (audience of the māhātmya)
Scene: Bali proclaims his identity and possessions—kingdom, wives, sons—and declares giving as his foremost vow, asking Nārada what he needs.
FAQs
The highest royal virtue is generosity; dāna offered with readiness becomes a defining dharmic vow.
The broader chapter is the glory of Vastrāpathakṣetra in Prabhāsa; this verse emphasizes dāna as a core dharma within the māhātmya.
Dāna (charitable giving) is explicitly stated as Bali’s primary vrata.