Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 77
सूत उवाच । तेषां तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा वह्निर्भयसमन्वितः । चिरं विचिंतयामास कुर्वेऽतः किं शुभावहम्
sūta uvāca | teṣāṃ tadvacanaṃ śrutvā vahnirbhayasamanvitaḥ | ciraṃ viciṃtayāmāsa kurve'taḥ kiṃ śubhāvaham
Sūta sprach: Als Agni ihre Worte hörte, von Furcht ergriffen, sann er lange nach: „Welche Handlung wird hier das heilsamste, glückverheißendste Ergebnis bringen?“
Sūta (narrator)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis (Naimiṣāraṇya frame; not explicit here)
Scene: Sūta narrates: Agni, frightened by the brāhmaṇas’ threat, stands by the altar in deep contemplation, weighing outcomes to find the most auspicious course.
FAQs
It presents dharma as discernment: when duties conflict, one should thoughtfully seek the most auspicious and least harmful path.
The narrative belongs to a tīrtha-māhātmya setting around a kuṇḍa; the snippet does not specify the tīrtha’s name.
No ritual is stated in this verse; it sets up the later instruction involving a purificatory bath.