Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 32
स्वसारं मातरं पुत्रवधूं गच्छन्नबीजवान् । कृतघ्नः सर्व कार्याणां वैफल्यं समुपाश्नुते
svasāraṃ mātaraṃ putravadhūṃ gacchannabījavān | kṛtaghnaḥ sarva kāryāṇāṃ vaiphalyaṃ samupāśnute
He who goes to his own sister, his mother, or his son’s wife becomes without seed (impotent or infertile). Moreover, the ungrateful person meets with failure in all undertakings.
Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), by section-context (Māheśvarakhaṇḍa discourse)
Scene: A moral allegory: a family household shown with protective boundaries; a shadowy figure crossing taboo lines is followed by imagery of a withered seed/empty womb motif (infertility). Parallel scene: a benefactor helping someone, then the recipient turning away ungratefully; the ungrateful person’s endeavors collapse—broken tools, failed harvest, extinguished lamp.
FAQs
Dharma safeguards both bodily well-being and life’s prosperity; incestuous conduct and ingratitude are portrayed as root-causes of sterility and repeated failure.
No tīrtha is mentioned; the verse is ethical instruction rather than site-māhātmya.
None directly; the practical prescription is moral: avoid forbidden relations and cultivate gratitude to prevent adverse karma.