Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 41
अथ सा तं समासाद्य शूलं रात्रौ पतिव्रता । निजगात्रेण भारार्त्ता गच्छमाना महासती
atha sā taṃ samāsādya śūlaṃ rātrau pativratā | nijagātreṇa bhārārttā gacchamānā mahāsatī
Lalu mahāsatī itu—istri pativrata—melangkah di tengah malam, tersiksa oleh beban pada tubuhnya sendiri, dan mendekati pasak (śūla) itu.
Narrator (Purāṇic narrator; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in Mahātmya-style narration)
Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (Māṇḍavya-śūla-sthāna)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Pilgrimage audience (not specified)
Scene: At night, the great chaste woman, bent under her load, suddenly sees the stake and approaches; the impaled sage stands in pain, and the scene holds a charged stillness before action or dialogue.
FAQs
Even unintended encounters on pilgrimage can become spiritually decisive, revealing hidden intersections of karma.
Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra remains the implied sacred setting for the unfolding event.
None; the emphasis is narrative—night travel and burden-bearing as part of dhārmic steadfastness.