Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 21
विश्वामित्र उवाच । वसिष्ठस्य भवान्याज्यस्तत्पुत्राणां विशेषतः । तत्कस्मादीदृशे पापे तैस्त्वमद्य नियोजितः
viśvāmitra uvāca | vasiṣṭhasya bhavānyājyastatputrāṇāṃ viśeṣataḥ | tatkasmādīdṛśe pāpe taistvamadya niyojitaḥ
বিশ্বামিত্র বললেন: তুমি বশিষ্ঠের—বিশেষত তাঁর পুত্রদের—পূজনীয়। তবে আজ তারা কেন তোমাকে এমন পাপময় অবস্থায় নিয়োজিত করল?
Viśvāmitra
Scene: Viśvāmitra, composed yet probing, addresses the afflicted king; the scene emphasizes the sage’s discerning gaze and the ethical gravity of the question.
FAQs
Dharma demands inquiry into cause (hetu) and justice; punishment should be understood in relation to conduct.
Within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya flow, the sanctity of the sages’ sphere is implicit; this line is primarily dialogic.
None; it sets up ethical investigation rather than prescribing a rite.