Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 20
एतस्मिन्नंतरे भीताः सर्वे देवाः सवासवाः । दृष्ट्वा यज्ञक्रियोच्छेदं क्षुत्पिपासा समाकुलाः
etasminnaṃtare bhītāḥ sarve devāḥ savāsavāḥ | dṛṣṭvā yajñakriyocchedaṃ kṣutpipāsā samākulāḥ
Cependant, tous les dieux—avec Indra—furent saisis de crainte. Voyant les rites sacrificiels interrompus, ils furent accablés par la faim et la soif.
Narrator (Purāṇic voice; contextually within Nāgara Khaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya)
Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Scene: The devas, led by Indra, appear wan and anxious, their faces drawn by hunger and thirst, as sacrificial fires across the land are shown extinguished; the sky feels heavy, signaling ritual order broken.
FAQs
When dharmic rites like yajña decline, cosmic balance is disturbed; even the devas feel the resulting scarcity and seek divine remedy.
The passage is set in the Nāgara Khaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya, moving toward the Hāṭakeśvara/Pādukā sacred context in the following verses.
No prescription yet—this verse establishes the crisis: the interruption of yajña (sacrificial ritual).