Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 20
न तोयगृध्नून्न शिशून्नांतर्वर्त्नित्वलक्षणान् । स घातयति धर्मज्ञो जातिधर्मपराङ्मुखः
na toyagṛdhnūnna śiśūnnāṃtarvartnitvalakṣaṇān | sa ghātayati dharmajño jātidharmaparāṅmukhaḥ
धर्म जाणणारा तो पाण्यासाठी व्याकुळ व जललोभी प्राणी, लहान शिशू, तसेच गर्भिणीची लक्षणे असलेली यांना मारत नाही; तो अशा नीच, जातिधर्मबद्ध क्रौर्यापासून पराङ्मुख असतो.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (ethical perimeter of the holy city)
Type: kshetra
Scene: At a small forest waterhole, animals bend to drink; a hunter recognizes their thirst and lowers his weapon. Nearby, a fawn and a visibly pregnant doe are spared; the scene radiates moral clarity.
FAQs
Dharma requires mercy toward the vulnerable; righteousness is measured by restraint, not power.
The Kāśīkhaṇḍa setting frames this as conduct befitting the sacred environs and pilgrimage routes of Kāśī.
None; the verse gives moral prohibitions protecting vulnerable beings.