Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 53
अर्वाक्छिलाक्रमणतो निष्ठा स्यात्सप्तमे पदे । इति व्यवस्य प्रददावन्यस्मै तां द्विजः सुताम्
arvākchilākramaṇato niṣṭhā syātsaptame pade | iti vyavasya pradadāvanyasmai tāṃ dvijaḥ sutām
彼はこう定めた。「婚姻の結びつきは第七歩において堅固とされる。ゆえに、それ以前—石を踏み進む儀礼の前—なら改め得る。」そう決して、バラモンは娘を別の者に与えた。
Narrator (within Māheśvarakhaṇḍa discourse; traditionally Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa to sages)
Scene: A brāhmaṇa father, having decided on the basis of ‘the bond is firm at the seventh step’, formally gives his daughter’s hand to another groom; ritual fire and attendants are suggested, but the emphasis is on the decision before the rite is sealed.
FAQs
Rites have defined dharmic thresholds; decisions affecting lives should respect both śāstra and ethical responsibility.
No tīrtha is glorified in this verse.
The verse alludes to the marriage rite’s ‘seventh step’ (saptapadī) as a marker of finality.