Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 36
तारकं च वधिष्यामि पश्य मेऽद्य पराक्रमम् । आनयंति च ये वीराः स्वामिनं रणसंसदि । ते पापिनो ह्यधर्मिष्ठा विमृशंतिरणं गताः
tārakaṃ ca vadhiṣyāmi paśya me'dya parākramam | ānayaṃti ca ye vīrāḥ svāminaṃ raṇasaṃsadi | te pāpino hyadharmiṣṭhā vimṛśaṃtiraṇaṃ gatāḥ
“Tāraka pun akan aku bunuh—lihatlah keberanianku hari ini! Dan para pahlawan yang membawa tuannya ke gelanggang perang—mereka itulah orang berdosa, paling tidak ber-dharma; setelah masuk ke perang barulah mereka mula berfikir-bimbang.”
Vīrabhadra
Tirtha: Kedāra-kṣetra (Kedāranātha)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Vīrabhadra, fierce and radiant, proclaims the slaying of Tāraka; behind him a tumult of warriors and banners; the devas watch, tense, as the battlefield-assembly is invoked.
FAQs
The verse voices a warrior’s ethic of decisive action, yet the narrative context warns that pride and anger can mislabel prudence as ‘adharma’.
The Kedārakhaṇḍa setting relates to the Kedāra sacred region; this verse is character speech within that larger tīrtha-focused text.
None; it is a martial declaration and moral accusation.