Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 11
अजातदंता ये केचिद्ये च गर्भे प्रपीडिताः । अग्निविद्युच्चोरहता व्याघ्रदंष्ट्रिभिरेव च
ajātadaṃtā ye kecidye ca garbhe prapīḍitāḥ | agnividyuccorahatā vyāghradaṃṣṭribhireva ca
Those who died before their teeth appeared, those who were afflicted and perished in the womb, those slain by fire, lightning, or thieves, and those torn by the fangs of tigers—(all are to be remembered).
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī-Gaṅgā (pitṛ-śānti context)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ritual inquirer/pilgrim audience
Scene: A compassionate rite at the ghāṭa where tiny child-forms and faint womb-silhouettes, along with victims of fire/lightning/robbery and wild beasts, are symbolically released into light by Gaṅgā’s grace.
FAQs
Ancestral dharma is compassionate: offerings are meant even for those who died prematurely or violently, not only for elders.
The surrounding narrative is the Gaṅgā in Kāśī, where such inclusive tarpaṇa is especially efficacious.
Include in tarpaṇa those who died in infancy, in the womb, or through calamities like fire, lightning, robbery, or animal attack.