Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 37
अहिंसा परमो धर्मस्तदग्निर्ज्वाल्यते कुतः । हूयमाने यतो वह्नौ सूक्ष्मजीववधो महान्
ahiṃsā paramo dharmastadagnirjvālyate kutaḥ | hūyamāne yato vahnau sūkṣmajīvavadho mahān
“Non-violence is the highest dharma—so how can this fire be kindled? For when offerings are poured into the flame, there is great slaughter of subtle living beings.”
Kṣapaṇaka (ascetic) to Barbarīka
Scene: The ascetic points toward the blazing altar, questioning the kindling of fire; tiny unseen beings are implied in the air and offerings, while priests continue the rite.
FAQs
It raises a classic dharma tension: the ideal of ahiṃsā versus ritual action that may entail unseen harm.
The verse is part of the Kaumārikākhaṇḍa’s local māhātmya narrative; the named setting nearby is Sīka-uttara and the Eka-pada cremation-ground region.
The verse references kindling sacrificial fire and offering oblations (homa/yajña) but does not prescribe a specific rite; it questions the practice on ahiṃsā grounds.