Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 44
विप्र उवाच । यद्येवमवलेपस्ते गमनं केन वार्यते । यथा तव प्रतिज्ञेयं ममापीयं तथाचला
vipra uvāca | yadyevamavalepaste gamanaṃ kena vāryate | yathā tava pratijñeyaṃ mamāpīyaṃ tathācalā
The brāhmaṇa said: “If such pride is in you, who can restrain your going? Yet just as your vow must be upheld, so too must this my claim stand firm—O Acalā, the Unshaken.”
Vipra (brāhmaṇa)
Listener: Acalā (addressed as ‘Unshaken One’)
Scene: A brāhmaṇa confronts an unshaken goddess-like figure (Acalā), asserting that her vow must stand, yet his rightful claim must also be honored; tense, face-to-face moral standoff.
FAQs
Dharma is measured by keeping vows and honoring rightful claims, not by pride or status.
No sacred geography is stated in this verse; it is a dharma-centered dialogue.
No specific rite is prescribed; the verse stresses the binding force of a vow (pratijñā).