Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 33
अकृत्वापि क्रियाः कार्याः कथं मृत्युवशं गतः । सोऽहं त्वया विना पुत्र न जीवामि कथंचन
akṛtvāpi kriyāḥ kāryāḥ kathaṃ mṛtyuvaśaṃ gataḥ | so'haṃ tvayā vinā putra na jīvāmi kathaṃcana
«Sans même avoir accompli les rites qui devaient l’être, comment es-tu tombé sous l’emprise de la Mort ? Sans toi, mon fils, je ne puis vivre d’aucune manière.»
Mṛkaṇḍu (addressing his son)
Scene: The father-sage, trembling, speaks of unfinished rites and death’s grasp; the sacred fire burns low; ritual implements lie unused, symbolizing interrupted dharma; the mother weeps silently.
FAQs
Purāṇic dharma stresses completing obligatory rites; yet grief also reveals the human dependence that spiritual maturity must transform.
No specific tīrtha is described in this verse; it remains within the Arbuda narrative frame.
The verse alludes to necessary ‘kriyāḥ’—obligatory rites (often understood as life-cycle or funeral-related duties), though not detailed here.