Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 12
वद केन पथा याता दस्यवो द्विजसत्तम । तेन गच्छामहे ब्रह्मन् यथा शीघ्रतरं वयम्
vada kena pathā yātā dasyavo dvijasattama | tena gacchāmahe brahman yathā śīghrataraṃ vayam
«Sage: welchen Weg nahmen die Räuber, o Bester der Dvija? Auf eben diesem Pfad werden wir gehen, o Brahmane, damit wir sie umso schneller erreichen.»
Guards/pursuers (rakṣiṇaḥ / taskarānugāḥ)
Tirtha: Revā-mārga (contextual pilgrimage path)
Type: ghat
Listener: Implied royal audience ('brahman', 'dvijasattama' addressed by guards; 'rājan' in surrounding narration)
Scene: Guards, slightly bowed, ask the sage to indicate the route taken by bandits; one points toward a forked forest path while the sage remains still.
FAQs
Worldly dharma (protecting society) appeals to spiritual authority; the episode highlights tensions between vows and communal responsibility.
The Revā Khaṇḍa’s pilgrimage landscape is the setting; the sanctity of the āśrama is implicit as the place where seekers of justice approach a sage.
None; it is a request for guidance to restore order by apprehending thieves.