Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 4
कृतघ्ना नास्तिकाश्चौरा मर्यादाभेदकास्तथा । स्नाता ये तत्र सत्तीर्थे ते यांति परमां गतिम् । विमानवरमारूढाः स्तूयमानाश्च किंनरैः
kṛtaghnā nāstikāścaurā maryādābhedakāstathā | snātā ye tatra sattīrthe te yāṃti paramāṃ gatim | vimānavaramārūḍhāḥ stūyamānāśca kiṃnaraiḥ
Selbst Undankbare, Ungläubige, Diebe und jene, die die Grenzen des Dharma überschreiten—wenn sie dort in jenem wahren Tīrtha baden—erlangen den höchsten Zustand, besteigen erlesene himmlische Vimānas und werden von den Kiṃnaras gepriesen.
Sūta (contextual continuation)
Tirtha: Mṛgatīrtha
Type: tirtha
Scene: A dramatic redemption tableau: morally fallen figures bathe at Mṛgatīrtha; above them appear radiant vimānas; Kiṃnaras in the sky sing and play instruments as the redeemed ascend; the contrast between prior darkness and sudden celestial light is emphasized.
FAQs
Tīrtha-grace can be radically transformative: sincere contact through snāna is portrayed as overriding even severe moral defects.
Mṛgatīrtha, called a “sat-tīrtha” (true and holy ford).
Snāna (ritual bathing) at Mṛgatīrtha; the verse emphasizes the resulting “paramā gati” (supreme destination).