Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 64
निर्विकारौ करौ दृष्ट्वा शुद्धो भवति धर्मतः । भयाद्वा पातयेद्यस्तु तदधो वा विभाव्यते
nirvikārau karau dṛṣṭvā śuddho bhavati dharmataḥ | bhayādvā pātayedyastu tadadho vā vibhāvyate
If, upon inspection, both hands are seen to be free from any change or injury, he is deemed purified according to dharma. But if, out of fear, he drops it, then by that very act he is regarded as fallen (guilty).
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative style)
Scene: Priests inspect the practitioner’s hands—unblemished palms signify purification; alternatively, a moment of fear where the object is dropped prematurely, with onlookers reacting and the verdict implied.
FAQs
Dharma evaluates purity through steadiness and truthfulness; fear-driven evasion is treated as moral failure.
No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; the focus is on dharma-based ritual adjudication.
A purity determination by observing whether the hands remain uninjured; dropping the object out of fear implies guilt.