Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 20
उपवासपरो भूत्वा मांसमश्नाति यो द्विजः । वृथामांसाद्वृथा तस्य तद्व्रतं जायते ध्रुवम्
upavāsaparo bhūtvā māṃsamaśnāti yo dvijaḥ | vṛthāmāṃsādvṛthā tasya tadvrataṃ jāyate dhruvam
ഉപവാസപരനായി ഇരിക്കുമ്പോഴും മാംസം ഭക്ഷിക്കുന്ന ദ്വിജന്, ആ വ്യർത്ഥ മാംസഭക്ഷണത്താൽ അവന്റെ വ്രതവും നിശ്ചയമായും വ്യർത്ഥമാകുന്നു।
Durvāsā
Listener: Unnamed king (implied)
Scene: Durvāsā’s words land like a verdict: the king appears stunned, hands still folded; a symbolic broken vow-thread or extinguished lamp indicates the vow’s futility when violated.
FAQs
A vow’s power depends on integrity; outward austerity without inner discipline nullifies the intended merit.
The teaching supports tīrtha practice generally by insisting on purity; no single site is named in this verse.
Maintain dietary restraint consistent with fasting; otherwise the vrata is declared ineffective.