Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 37
इन्द्र उवाच । शृण्वंतु देवताः सर्वा मम दुःखस्य कारणम् । दुःखेन मम यल्लब्धं तत्किं वा प्रार्थयेद्यमः । बृहस्पतिः समालोक्य सर्वान्दे वानथाब्रवीत्
indra uvāca | śṛṇvaṃtu devatāḥ sarvā mama duḥkhasya kāraṇam | duḥkhena mama yallabdhaṃ tatkiṃ vā prārthayedyamaḥ | bṛhaspatiḥ samālokya sarvānde vānathābravīt
Indra sprach: „Mögen alle Gottheiten den Grund meines Kummers hören. Was Yama zu erlangen begehrt—was ich nur unter Mühsal gewann—warum sollte er danach verlangen?“ Da sprach Bṛhaspati, alle Götter betrachtend, zur Antwort.
Indra (followed by Bṛhaspati beginning to respond)
Scene: Indra rises and speaks to the assembled devas, expressing distress; Bṛhaspati, calm and luminous, prepares to respond, embodying guru-like steadiness.
FAQs
Worldly rank is insecure; when dharma-backed tapas rises, even Indra’s sovereignty appears fragile—prompting reflection on true authority grounded in righteousness.
Dharmāraṇya remains the sacred backdrop where Yama’s tapas is understood to be taking place.
No direct ritual instruction; the verse frames a theological conflict around the fruits of tapas.