Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 14
वंशोच्छेदं समासाद्य गमिष्यति यमालयम् । तस्मात्सर्वप्रयत्नेन रक्षणीयमिदं पुरम् । मम वाक्याद्विशेषेण हितमिच्छद्भिरात्मनः
vaṃśocchedaṃ samāsādya gamiṣyati yamālayam | tasmātsarvaprayatnena rakṣaṇīyamidaṃ puram | mama vākyādviśeṣeṇa hitamicchadbhirātmanaḥ
Rencontrant l’extinction de sa lignée, il ira au séjour de Yama. C’est pourquoi, par tous les efforts, cette cité doit être protégée—et tout particulièrement selon mon ordre—par ceux qui recherchent leur propre bien.
A king/ruler (issuing a final emphatic injunction)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A proclamation scene: Skanda’s authority implied; townspeople and a ruler vow to protect the sacred town; in contrast, a shadow-vision shows Yama’s abode and a withered family tree symbolizing lineage extinction.
FAQs
Safeguarding dharmic institutions protects one’s own welfare; violating them is said to destroy lineage and lead to Yama’s realm.
The town associated with Śaṅkhatīrtha in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya.
A strong dharmic injunction: protect the endowed town with full effort as a continuing obligation.