Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3
सूत उवाच । एतदर्थं पुरा पृष्टो मार्कंडेयो महामुनिः । रोहिताश्वेन विप्रेंद्रा हरिश्चन्द्र सुतेन सः
sūta uvāca | etadarthaṃ purā pṛṣṭo mārkaṃḍeyo mahāmuniḥ | rohitāśvena vipreṃdrā hariścandra sutena saḥ
Sūta dit : À ce sujet même, jadis, le grand sage Mārkaṇḍeya fut interrogé, ô meilleurs des brāhmanes, par Rohitāśva, fils de Hariścandra.
Sūta
Listener: Ṛṣis
Scene: Sūta begins recounting an older episode: Mārkaṇḍeya seated as a venerable sage, Rohitāśva as a respectful king with folded hands; a subtle temporal shift indicated by a vignette-like composition.
FAQs
Dharma is preserved through lineage and inquiry: kings and householders seek authoritative guidance from realized sages for correct ancestral rites.
The narrative soon situates the teaching in the Sarayū–Ayodhyā sacred landscape, a key tīrtha-context in this Adhyāya.
No prescription is given yet; the verse introduces the authoritative precedent for answering questions about śrāddha.