Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 31
को यमः कोथवा कालः को मृत्युः कस्तथांतकः । को वा विधाता के लेखाः कुद्धेष्वस्मासु कः परः
ko yamaḥ kothavā kālaḥ ko mṛtyuḥ kastathāṃtakaḥ | ko vā vidhātā ke lekhāḥ kuddheṣvasmāsu kaḥ paraḥ
«Qui est Yama ? Qui donc est Kāla, le Temps ? Qui est la Mort, et qui est l’Exterminateur ? Qui est l’Ordonnateur, et quels sont les décrets du destin—lorsque nous sommes courroucés, qui pourrait se tenir au-dessus de nous ?»
Gaṇas/Pramathas (quoted speech within Skanda’s narration)
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta-kṣetra)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Purāṇic audience (not explicit in verse)
Scene: Fierce attendants, eyes blazing, shout rhetorical challenges to Yama and Time; their gestures are defiant—raised fists and weapons—against an unseen cosmic authority, with Śiva’s abode looming behind them.
FAQs
Arrogance—even among powerful beings—blinds one to higher divine authority; humility before Dharma and the Supreme is essential.
The verse occurs in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa setting of Kāśī, where Śiva’s supremacy over death is a recurring theme.
None; it is a rhetorical boast within the narrative.