Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 9
एतस्मिन्नंतरे तत्र कार्तिकेयः समभ्ययात् । पप्रच्छ च किमेतद्धि देवानां कोपकारणम् । येन कालुष्यतां प्राप्तं दिक्चक्रं सकलं मुने च । नारद उवाच । एतेषां सांप्रतं स्कन्द मया वार्ता निवेदिता । त्रैलोक्यं दानवैः सर्वैर्यथा नीतं मदोत्कटैः
etasminnaṃtare tatra kārtikeyaḥ samabhyayāt | papraccha ca kimetaddhi devānāṃ kopakāraṇam | yena kāluṣyatāṃ prāptaṃ dikcakraṃ sakalaṃ mune ca | nārada uvāca | eteṣāṃ sāṃprataṃ skanda mayā vārtā niveditā | trailokyaṃ dānavaiḥ sarvairyathā nītaṃ madotkaṭaiḥ
À cet instant, Kārttikeya arriva en ce lieu et demanda : « Ô sage, quelle est donc la cause de la colère des dieux, par laquelle toute la roue des directions est devenue souillée ? » Nārada dit : « Ô Skanda, je viens à l’instant de leur rapporter l’affaire : comment tous les Dānavas, enivrés d’orgueil, ont fait passer les trois mondes sous leur domination. »
Nārada (explicit: “Nārada uvāca”; with Kārttikeya’s question preceding)
Listener: Skanda (and devas present)
Scene: At the moment the directions are darkened, Kārttikeya arrives—radiant, youthful, spear-bearing—questioning the devas and Nārada about the cause of their anger; Nārada replies, describing daityas’ intoxicated domination of the three worlds.
FAQs
When arrogance and lawlessness spread, the guardians of dharma must inquire, diagnose the cause, and act to restore balance.
This passage sets narrative context within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya; the tīrtha is not specified in this verse.
No ritual instruction appears here; it is a narrative dialogue about the cause of cosmic disturbance.