Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 34
वसिष्ठोऽपि समाख्याय आपद्धर्मं महामनाः । कालस्यानन्तरप्रेक्षी प्रोद्ववाहाऽन्त्यजाङ्गनाम् । अक्षमालेति वै नाम्नीं प्रसिद्धा भुवनत्रये
vasiṣṭho'pi samākhyāya āpaddharmaṃ mahāmanāḥ | kālasyānantaraprekṣī prodvavāhā'ntyajāṅganām | akṣamāleti vai nāmnīṃ prasiddhā bhuvanatraye
Vasiṣṭha yang berhati agung turut menjelaskan āpaddharma, yakni dharma pada saat darurat. Dengan menimbang tuntutan zaman, baginda pun menikahi menurut tata cara seorang wanita dari golongan Antyaja bernama Akṣamālā, yang kemudian masyhur di tiga alam.
Īśvara (Śiva)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (frame)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and other sages (frame; not explicit in the verse)
Scene: Vasiṣṭha, serene and authoritative, completes an āpaddharma discourse; beside him stands Akṣamālā, modest yet dignified, as the marriage rite is sanctioned by time’s necessity; onlookers—ṛṣis and subtle devas—witness the dharmic exception.
FAQs
Dharma is contextual: in calamity, right action may differ from ordinary norms, yet must be guided by conscience, explanation, and responsibility.
The account is embedded in the Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya, linking the sages’ story to the sanctity of Prabhāsa.
The verse references āpaddharma as a guiding principle rather than a specific rite; it narrates a marriage performed as a dharmic response to crisis.