Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 11
मार्गं न ते सौरपुरस्य दूतान्वनांतरं षण्मुख किंचिदन्यत् । स्वप्ने न पश्यंति च ते मनुष्या येषां गता जागरणेन निद्रा
mārgaṃ na te saurapurasya dūtānvanāṃtaraṃ ṣaṇmukha kiṃcidanyat | svapne na paśyaṃti ca te manuṣyā yeṣāṃ gatā jāgaraṇena nidrā
Wahai Ṣaṇmukha, mereka yang tidurnya terusir kerana berjaga tidak akan melihat, walau dalam mimpi, para utusan kota Yama, dan tidak pula menempuh jalan rimba yang menakutkan atau apa pun yang lain.
Narrative voice addressing Ṣaṇmukha (Skanda); specific speaker not explicit in this verse
Tirtha: Viṣṇu-jāgaraṇa (abhaya-phala)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṣaṇmukha (addressed)
Scene: Devotees keep vigil; outside the temple boundary, shadowy Yamadūtas with nooses fade away; above, the dream-world is shown as clear and untroubled, with no fearful forest-path imagery.
FAQs
Keeping a sacred vigil is said to remove fear and the terror of Yama’s messengers, signaling protection through dharmic devotion.
No specific tīrtha is named; the verse highlights the spiritual protection associated with the vigil practice.
Jāgaraṇa—remaining awake in religious observance—presented as the cause of fearlessness even in dreams.