Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 3
वृत्रं निहत्य वृत्रारिर्ब्रह्महत्यामवाप्तवान् । अनुतप्तोथ पप्रच्छ प्रायश्चित्तं पुरोहितम्
vṛtraṃ nihatya vṛtrārirbrahmahatyāmavāptavān | anutaptotha papraccha prāyaścittaṃ purohitam
Après avoir terrassé Vṛtra, Indra, l’ennemi de Vṛtra, encourut le péché du meurtre d’un brahmane. Saisi de repentir, il interrogea alors son prêtre sur le rite d’expiation.
Skanda
Listener: Agastya
Scene: Indra, still bearing the aura of battle, stands troubled and downcast before his priest (Bṛhaspati implied), hands lowered in shame; a shadowy personification of brahmahatyā clings behind him; the scene foreshadows a journey toward a purifying tīrtha.
FAQs
Even mighty beings must seek dharmic atonement; remorse and guidance from a priest/teacher lead toward purification.
The verse sets up the Dharmatīrtha-māhātmya narrative, preparing the context for a tīrtha-linked expiation.
It introduces prāyaścitta (expiation) as necessary after grave sin; the specific rite is to be explained in subsequent verses.