Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 67
सर्वपापाधिकं पापं बालहत्या द्विजोत्तम । बालहत्यायुतो विप्रः पच्यते नरके ध्रुवम्
sarvapāpādhikaṃ pāpaṃ bālahatyā dvijottama | bālahatyāyuto vipraḥ pacyate narake dhruvam
Tuer un enfant est un péché qui surpasse tous les péchés, ô meilleur des deux-fois-nés. Le brāhmane souillé par l’infanticide est assurément cuit en enfer.
Unspecified narrator within Revā Khaṇḍa (ethical injunction addressed to a dvija)
Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra tīrthas (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A stern dharma proclamation: the sage addresses ‘dvijottama’ and depicts the inevitability of naraka for bāla-hatyā, with imagery of hellfire ‘cooking’ as a moral deterrent.
FAQs
Ahiṃsā is foundational; harming the helpless (especially children) is presented as an extreme adharma with severe karmic retribution.
No specific tīrtha is named; the verse is part of Revā Khaṇḍa’s broader dharma instruction within the Narmadā sacred geography.
No explicit ritual is stated; the verse functions as a strict prohibition and moral warning.