Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 83
तमेव नीलमित्याहुर्नीलः पञ्चविधः स्मृतः । यस्तु वैश्यगृहे जातः स वै नीलो विशिष्यते
tameva nīlamityāhurnīlaḥ pañcavidhaḥ smṛtaḥ | yastu vaiśyagṛhe jātaḥ sa vai nīlo viśiṣyate
ذلك بعينه يُسمّى «نِيلا»؛ وقد ذُكر أن النِيلا خمسةُ أنواع. غير أنّ المولود في بيتِ الفيشيا (Vaiśya) يُعَدّ أرفعَ النِيلا وأشرفَه.
Unspecified in snippet (Revā-khaṇḍa narrator)
Scene: A learned narrator enumerates five ‘nīla’ types before an attentive listener; in the background, a cow-shed and merchants’ household motifs subtly indicate the Vaiśya context, with palm-leaf manuscripts and ritual vessels suggesting dharma-śāstra authority.
FAQs
Puranic ritual discourse often codifies categories and gradations, emphasizing careful adherence to traditional definitions.
The Revā-khaṇḍa tīrtha context of Adhyāya 146 (not named in this verse).
A fivefold classification of ‘nīla’ bulls is noted, with one subtype (born in a Vaiśya household) praised as superior.