Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 11
आरुरुक्षुमवेक्ष्यामुं सुरुचिर्धुवमब्रवीत् । दौर्भगेय किमारोढुमिच्छेरंकं महीपतेः
ārurukṣumavekṣyāmuṃ surucirdhuvamabravīt | daurbhageya kimāroḍhumiccheraṃkaṃ mahīpateḥ
അവൻ കയറാൻ ഒരുങ്ങുന്നതു കണ്ട സുരുചി ധ്രുവനോട് പറഞ്ഞു—“ദുര്ഭാഗ്യവാനേ! നീ രാജാവിന്റെ മടിയിൽ എന്തിന് കയറാൻ ആഗ്രഹിക്കുന്നു?”
Skanda (narrating); direct speech: Suruci
Tirtha: Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Sages in the frame
Scene: Suruci, adorned as queen, turns sharply toward Dhruva with a raised hand in admonition; Dhruva pauses mid-step, face wounded; the king looks conflicted; courtiers avert eyes.
FAQs
Harsh speech and pride wound the heart, yet such suffering can redirect one toward higher, unshakable spiritual attainment.
No specific tīrtha is named in this line; it belongs to the Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s broader sacred geography of Kāśī.
None; the verse records Suruci’s rebuke.