Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 158
गर्भाष्टमे पिता मह्यं वर्षे मृत्युं गतस्ततः । ततः सा तं समादाय जननी मे पतिव्रता । मां त्यक्त्वा दुःखितं दीनं प्रविष्टा हव्यवाहनम्
garbhāṣṭame pitā mahyaṃ varṣe mṛtyuṃ gatastataḥ | tataḥ sā taṃ samādāya jananī me pativratā | māṃ tyaktvā duḥkhitaṃ dīnaṃ praviṣṭā havyavāhanam
„In meinem achten Lebensjahr starb mein Vater. Da nahm meine Mutter — ihrem Gatten treu — ihn zum Totenritus und ließ mich, traurig und hilflos, zurück; dann trat sie in das heilige Feuer ein.“
The pilgrim/unknown man speaking to the Brāhmaṇas
Scene: The speaker recounts childhood tragedy: father’s death when he was eight; mother, devoted, enters the funeral fire, leaving the child bereft—an intense flashback within the sacred assembly.
FAQs
Worldly loss and impermanence can become the catalyst for detachment and a dharmic search for purification and meaning.
This verse provides personal history; the tīrtha setting frames the confession but no particular site is named in this line.
It alludes to funeral rites and the mother’s entry into fire (a severe vow), presented as part of the narrative background.