Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 28
न मन्त्रा न तपो दानं न तीर्थं न च संयमः । समर्था रक्षितुं जंतुं पीडितं पूर्वकर्मभिः
na mantrā na tapo dānaṃ na tīrthaṃ na ca saṃyamaḥ | samarthā rakṣituṃ jaṃtuṃ pīḍitaṃ pūrvakarmabhiḥ
Ni les mantras, ni l’ascèse, ni l’aumône, ni les lieux de pèlerinage, ni la maîtrise de soi ne peuvent protéger l’être tourmenté par ses actes antérieurs.
Unspecified (deduced: Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa narrating within a Māhātmya discourse)
Scene: A reflective ascetic or pilgrim pauses at a tīrtha, seeing ritual implements (mālā, kamaṇḍalu, dāna-vessels) rendered small against the vast wheel of karma above; a suffering being is shown under the shadow of past deeds.
FAQs
Prior karma can ripen inexorably; spiritual means are not portrayed as automatic shields against already-fructifying deeds.
The statement is delivered within the Śrīhāṭakeśvara-kṣetra Māhātmya framework (Nāgarakhaṇḍa).
Mantra, tapas, dāna, tīrtha, and saṃyama are mentioned, but not as prescriptions—rather as practices that may not avert matured past karma.