Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 27
अथ भग्नं बलं दृष्ट्वा हैहयाधिपतिः क्रुधा । स्वचापं वाञ्छयामास सज्यं कर्तुं त्वरान्वितः । शक्नोति नारोपयितुं सुयत्नमपि चाश्रितः
atha bhagnaṃ balaṃ dṛṣṭvā haihayādhipatiḥ krudhā | svacāpaṃ vāñchayāmāsa sajyaṃ kartuṃ tvarānvitaḥ | śaknoti nāropayituṃ suyatnamapi cāśritaḥ
Als er sein Heer zerschmettert sah, geriet der Herr der Haihayas in Zorn und eilte, seinen eigenen Bogen zu bespannen; doch selbst bei größter Anstrengung vermochte er den Pfeil nicht aufzulegen.
Deductive attribution: Purāṇic narrator
Scene: The Haihaya lord stands amid a broken army, face flushed with anger, trying to string his bow; his hands strain, yet the bow remains unstrung, as if an unseen force resists.
FAQs
Adharma and grave sin can manifest as sudden incapacity—power fails at the decisive moment, revealing the hidden governance of karma.
Not named here; the chapter’s broader tīrtha framework (with later Narmadā reference) supplies the sacred-geography emphasis.
None; this is narrative illustrating karmic consequence.