Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 33
बलदेवं ततः प्राप्ता रथमार्गानुगामिनम् । तेषां युद्धं बलस्यासीत्सर्वलोकक्षयंकरम्
baladevaṃ tataḥ prāptā rathamārgānugāminam | teṣāṃ yuddhaṃ balasyāsītsarvalokakṣayaṃkaram
Ils atteignirent alors Baladeva, qui suivait la trace de la route du char. Le combat qui s’éleva contre Bala fut si effroyable qu’il semblait pouvoir anéantir tous les mondes.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced: Āvantya-khaṇḍa narrative style)
Listener: rājan (king)
Scene: Baladeva stands on/near the chariot-track as the dānavas converge; the clash erupts with a sense of cosmic dread—sky darkening, weapons flashing, earth trembling.
FAQs
Unrestrained violence, even when heroic, is portrayed as world-threatening; dharma requires that power be governed by restraint and right purpose.
The broader setting is the Revā-khaṇḍa (Narmadā region), preparing the narrative to connect martial events with the sanctity of Narmadā-tīrthas.
None in this verse; it is a narrative description of the battle’s intensity.