Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 28
न मन्त्रा न तपो दानं न तीर्थं न च संयमः । समर्था रक्षितुं जंतुं पीडितं पूर्वकर्मभिः
na mantrā na tapo dānaṃ na tīrthaṃ na ca saṃyamaḥ | samarthā rakṣituṃ jaṃtuṃ pīḍitaṃ pūrvakarmabhiḥ
ना मंत्र, ना तप, ना दान, ना तीर्थसेवा, ना संयम—पूर्वकर्मांनी पीडित झालेल्या जीवाचे रक्षण करण्यास समर्थ ठरत नाहीत।
Unspecified (deduced: Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa narrating within a Māhātmya discourse)
Scene: A reflective ascetic or pilgrim pauses at a tīrtha, seeing ritual implements (mālā, kamaṇḍalu, dāna-vessels) rendered small against the vast wheel of karma above; a suffering being is shown under the shadow of past deeds.
FAQs
Prior karma can ripen inexorably; spiritual means are not portrayed as automatic shields against already-fructifying deeds.
The statement is delivered within the Śrīhāṭakeśvara-kṣetra Māhātmya framework (Nāgarakhaṇḍa).
Mantra, tapas, dāna, tīrtha, and saṃyama are mentioned, but not as prescriptions—rather as practices that may not avert matured past karma.