Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 18
सापवादो रणं त्यक्त्वा मृतो यस्मान्नराधिप । सप्तयोनिषु ते जन्म तस्माज्जातं मया सह
sāpavādo raṇaṃ tyaktvā mṛto yasmānnarādhipa | saptayoniṣu te janma tasmājjātaṃ mayā saha
يا سيّدَ الناس، لأنه مات بعد أن ترك ساحة القتال—حاملًا العار واللوم—فقد وُلِد عبر سبعة أرحام؛ وهكذا وقع أن وُلِد معي في مسار التناسخ.
A female figure speaking to the king (implied by later verses: ‘tvāṃ vinā me patiḥ…’)
Listener: A king (narādhipa)
Scene: A warrior drops his weapons and turns away from the battlefield; shadowy figures point in reproach; behind him, a symbolic sequence of seven wombs/embryonic forms indicates repeated rebirth.
FAQs
Actions that violate one’s dharma—here, deserting battle—can yield blame and prolonged karmic consequence across repeated births.
The narrative is situated within the Vastrāpatha-kṣetra māhātmya of Prabhāsa, where karmic stories underscore the tirtha’s moral framework.
No direct ritual is stated; the verse teaches karmic causality tied to dharma.