Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 78
खरोष्ट्रक्रोष्ट्र विरुते समवाये रुदत्यपि । उपाकर्मणि चोत्सर्गे नाविमार्गे तरौ जले
kharoṣṭrakroṣṭra virute samavāye rudatyapi | upākarmaṇi cotsarge nāvimārge tarau jale
When the braying of donkeys and camels is heard, when there is noisy commotion and even weeping, at the time of the Upākarman and Utsarga rites, and while on a boat-route, on a tree, or in water—on these occasions sacred study should be suspended.
Skanda
Tirtha: Gaṅgā-ghāṭas of Kāśī (implied)
Type: ghat
Scene: A student pauses recitation as a noisy street/ghat scene unfolds—animals bray, people bustle, someone weeps; a boat waits at the ghat, signaling travel as a liminal state unsuitable for study.
FAQs
Sacred recitation requires mental steadiness and ritual propriety; disruptive settings and transitional rites call for restraint.
The broader setting is Kāśī, where dharma for residents and pilgrims is taught as part of Kāśī-māhātmya.
Upākarman and Utsarga are explicitly named as times connected with Vedic discipline, implying a regulated schedule for study/recitation.