Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 128
किं न श्रुतः पुरा गीतः श्लोकः स्वायंभुवेन यः । यथा बालेषु निक्षिप्ताः स्त्रीषु षंडितकेषु च । अपस्मारीषु चैवापि सर्वे ते संशयं गताः
kiṃ na śrutaḥ purā gītaḥ ślokaḥ svāyaṃbhuvena yaḥ | yathā bāleṣu nikṣiptāḥ strīṣu ṣaṃḍitakeṣu ca | apasmārīṣu caivāpi sarve te saṃśayaṃ gatāḥ
„Habt ihr nicht den Vers gehört, den einst Svāyambhuva (Manu) sang? ‚Wenn Angelegenheiten Kindern, Frauen, Eunuchen und selbst Epileptikern anvertraut werden, geraten sie alle in Zweifel und Verwirrung.‘“
Viṣṇu (Hari) speaking to the Devas
Scene: Hari invokes an old maxim of Svāyambhuva Manu; devas listen with chastened faces; the proverb hangs over the scene like a moral banner amid the battlefield.
FAQs
Dharma thrives under qualified leadership and clear discernment; entrusting grave matters to the unfit produces doubt and disorder.
No tīrtha is referenced; the verse functions as a nīti (ethical) citation within the story.
None.