Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 49
क्षुधितं क्षुधितः सर्पं घटस्थं प्रोच्य पूर्ववत् । संस्पृशेत्तालिकाः सप्त न दशेच्छुध्यतीति सः
kṣudhitaṃ kṣudhitaḥ sarpaṃ ghaṭasthaṃ procya pūrvavat | saṃspṛśettālikāḥ sapta na daśecchudhyatīti saḥ
Wenn die Schlange hungrig ist, soll der Teilnehmer, ebenfalls hungrig, die im Topf gehaltene Schlange wie zuvor gelehrt ansprechen. Berührt er sie siebenmal, wird sie nicht beißen—so wird er gereinigt (rehabilitiert).
Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative style)
Scene: A dramatic ordeal: a clay/metal pot containing a coiled snake; the hungry participant reaches out with steady hand, touching the snake seven times while reciting; attendants watch anxiously; the snake remains non-aggressive.
FAQs
Truth and dharmic order are portrayed as forces that restrain even danger; innocence is symbolically protected.
None; the verse describes an ordeal involving a snake kept in a pot.
A pot-contained hungry snake is ritually addressed; the participant touches it seven times—if it does not bite, the participant is declared purified.