Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 90
ब्रह्महत्या सुरापानं गुरुदारनिषेवणम् । भ्रूणहा स्वर्णहर्ता च मुच्यन्ते नात्र संशयः
brahmahatyā surāpānaṃ gurudāraniṣevaṇam | bhrūṇahā svarṇahartā ca mucyante nātra saṃśayaḥ
Même ceux chargés du péché de tuer un brāhmane, de boire l’alcool, de souiller la couche du maître, de tuer un embryon et de voler l’or, ici sont délivrés—sans aucun doute.
Śaṅkara (Śiva)
Tirtha: Somānātha-kṣetra (Prabhāsa)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira (implied by adjacent verse)
Scene: A penitent pilgrim stands before Somānātha’s liṅga with folded hands; shadowy personifications of the mahāpātakas dissolve into light as sacred ash and lamp-flame glow.
FAQs
The Purāṇic tīrtha is portrayed as a powerful field of grace where even grave sins can be purified through sincere approach.
The ‘here’ refers to the praised Revā Khaṇḍa tīrtha context, closely linked in this passage to Soma-nātha and the saṅgama observances.
Implicitly, approaching the tīrtha with prescribed acts (snāna, pradakṣiṇā, japa) is presented as efficacious even for mahāpātakas.