Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 27
पाययित्वा सुतं बालं दृष्ट्वा पृष्ट्वा जनं स्वकम् । पुनः प्रत्यागमिष्यामि यदि त्वं मन्यसे विभो
pāyayitvā sutaṃ bālaṃ dṛṣṭvā pṛṣṭvā janaṃ svakam | punaḥ pratyāgamiṣyāmi yadi tvaṃ manyase vibho
“Setelah aku menyusukan anak lembu yang kecil, serta menziarahi dan bertanya khabar kaumku sendiri, aku akan kembali semula—jika engkau, wahai Yang Perkasa, mengizinkannya.”
Kapilā (the cow)
Tirtha: Arbuda-kṣetra (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A gentle cow (Kapilā) stands before a tiger in a forest-edge clearing, pleading for leave to feed her calf and check her cowshed, hands (forelegs) implied in supplication; the calf is shown in the distance near a simple gokuḷa enclosure.
FAQs
Duty to dependents and fidelity to one’s word are upheld together—service first, then returning to face consequences.
The Arbuda setting remains implicit; the verse centers on ethical conduct rather than explicit tīrtha praise.
No formal rite is prescribed; the emphasis is on pratijñā (a pledged return) grounded in dharma.