Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 12
हर उवाच । धर्मारण्ये सुरपते ब्रह्महत्या न पीडयेत् । हत्या गवां द्विजातीनां बालस्य योषितामपि
hara uvāca | dharmāraṇye surapate brahmahatyā na pīḍayet | hatyā gavāṃ dvijātīnāṃ bālasya yoṣitāmapi
हर म्हणाला—हे सुरपते! धर्मारण्यात ब्रह्महत्येचा त्रास पीडा देत नाही; गायींची, द्विजांची, बालकाची किंवा स्त्रीची हत्या यांमुळे झालेले पापही तेथे टिकत नाही।
Śiva (Hara)
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya
Type: kshetra
Listener: Surapति/Devendra (Indra)
Scene: Śiva declares the extraordinary power of Dharmāraṇya; the forest seems luminous—trees, waters, and air subtly radiate sanctity; Indra’s face shifts from fear to relief.
FAQs
A sanctified place (kṣetra) empowered by divine will can neutralize even grave karmic burdens when approached with reverence and purity.
Dharmāraṇya is explicitly glorified as a kṣetra where severe sins do not afflict the devotee.
Implicitly, seeking refuge in the kṣetra; the explicit instruction to enter and bathe is given in the next verse.