Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 99
पीडनं क्रियते तेषां यत्र तौ युग्मपर्वतौ । या सा वैतरणी घोरा नदी रक्तप्रवाहिनी
pīḍanaṃ kriyate teṣāṃ yatra tau yugmaparvatau | yā sā vaitaraṇī ghorā nadī raktapravāhinī
There, at the place where those two Twin Mountains stand, torment is inflicted upon them. That is the dreadful Vaitaraṇī—a river whose current flows like blood.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) speaking to the sages (deduced from Āvantya Khaṇḍa narrative style within Skanda Purāṇa)
Tirtha: Vaitaraṇī (infernal crossing)
Type: river
Scene: A terrifying river flowing like blood, flanked by two looming Twin Mountains; sinners are driven toward it by Yama’s attendants; the air is heavy and red-black.
FAQs
It underscores karmic consequence: beings who fall into wrongdoing encounter fearsome suffering, symbolized by the crushing Twin Mountains and the dreadful Vaitaraṇī.
The verse occurs in the Revā Khaṇḍa (Narmadā/Revā region) and references a fearsome locale associated with the Vaitaraṇī and the Twin Mountains, used to magnify the moral and sacred-geographical teaching of the section.
No direct ritual act (snāna, dāna, japa, vrata) is stated in this verse; it functions as a descriptive warning within the māhātmya narrative.
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