Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 21
राक्षसैर्बहुभिः सार्धं तथान्यैर्भूतसंज्ञितैः । पिशाचैश्च दुराधर्षैर्यज्ञविध्वंसतत्परैः
rākṣasairbahubhiḥ sārdhaṃ tathānyairbhūtasaṃjñitaiḥ | piśācaiśca durādharṣairyajñavidhvaṃsatatparaiḥ
അനേകം രാക്ഷസരോടൊപ്പം ‘ഭൂത’ എന്നു വിളിക്കപ്പെടുന്ന മറ്റു സത്ത്വങ്ങളും, ദുർധർഷരായ പിശാചുകളും ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നു; എല്ലാവരും യാഗധ്വംസത്തിൽ തത്പരർ।
Deductive (narratorial voice within Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya; explicit speaker not in snippet)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A swelling horde: rākṣasas flanked by shadowy bhūtas and fierce piśācas encircle the yajña ground, eyes gleaming, mouths agape, as the sacred firelight flickers against their forms.
FAQs
Sacred action (yajña) attracts opposition; steadfast guardianship and purity protect dharma from destructive impulses.
The verse belongs to a Tīrthamāhātmya chapter in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa; the exact tīrtha name is not stated in this single verse.
No explicit instruction is given; the verse characterizes the assailants as ‘yajña-destroyers’.