Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1
। एवं तस्य नरेन्द्रस्य व्याघ्ररूपस्य कानने । जगाम सुमहान्कालो निघ्नतो विविधान्द्विज
| evaṃ tasya narendrasya vyāghrarūpasya kānane | jagāma sumahānkālo nighnato vividhāndvija
अशा रीतीने तो नरेन्द्र व्याघ्ररूप धारण करून वनात राहिला; विविध प्राण्यांचा संहार करीत असता, हे द्विज, फार मोठा काळ निघून गेला।
Narrator (within the Purāṇic dialogue; exact named speaker not in snippet)
Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (episode continuum)
Type: kshetra
Listener: A brāhmaṇa interlocutor (dvija)
Scene: A tiger with faint royal aura prowls a dense forest; shadows of slain creatures, broken branches, and a distant hermitage silhouette hint at impending moral reversal; time suggested by changing moons/seasonal foliage.
FAQs
When dharma is lost, one may descend into violent instinct; time intensifies the consequences until grace or expiation intervenes.
The broader Śrī Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra context continues; this verse sets the narrative backdrop before the tīrtha’s saving power is shown.
None here; it narrates the passing of time and the tiger-form king’s actions.