Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 113
हत्वा तं फलकाग्रेण बभाषे दुस्सहं वचः । इदानीं स्मर रे विष्णुं नो चेज्जवलितकु ण्डलम् । पतिष्यति शिरो भूमौ फलं पक्वं यथा नगात्
hatvā taṃ phalakāgreṇa babhāṣe dussahaṃ vacaḥ | idānīṃ smara re viṣṇuṃ no cejjavalitaku ṇḍalam | patiṣyati śiro bhūmau phalaṃ pakvaṃ yathā nagāt
L'ayant frappé de la pointe de son épée, il prononça des paroles insupportables : « Maintenant, misérable, souviens-toi de Viṣṇu ! Sinon, ta tête, ornée de boucles d'oreilles flamboyantes, tombera à terre comme un fruit mûr tombe d'un arbre. »
Narrator within the Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa (contextual; likely Sūta recounting the episode)
Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Naimiṣāraṇya ṛṣis
Scene: The antagonist strikes with the sword’s tip, leaning forward with blazing earrings; Prahlāda stands calm; the pillar looms; the threat of a head falling like ripe fruit is visualized by a fruit-laden tree motif in the background.
FAQs
True devotion is tested under threat; remembrance of Viṣṇu is presented as the devotee’s refuge even in mortal danger.
The episode is framed within the Vastrāpathakṣetra-māhātmya of the Prabhāsa region, integrating Purāṇic narrative with the sanctity of the locale.
No explicit ritual is prescribed here; the emphasis is on smaraṇa (remembrance) of Viṣṇu as a dharmic, devotional act.