Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 169
ब्रह्मदत्तवरो रौद्रस्तारकाख्यो महासुरः । तेन सर्वं जगद्व्याप्तं तस्य नष्टा सुरा रणे
brahmadattavaro raudrastārakākhyo mahāsuraḥ | tena sarvaṃ jagadvyāptaṃ tasya naṣṭā surā raṇe
Ada seorang mahāsura yang garang bernama Tāraka, dikurniai anugerah oleh Brahmā. Olehnya seluruh jagat dikuasai, dan para dewa tewas kalah dalam peperangan.
Narrator (Purāṇic narrator within Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa; exact speaker not explicit in the snippet)
Listener: null
Scene: A towering, fierce Tāraka empowered by Brahmā’s boon spreads his dominion across the worlds; devas retreat wounded from battle as the cosmos darkens under asuric banners.
FAQs
Power obtained through boons must be governed by dharma; otherwise it becomes oppression that invites divine correction.
This verse functions as mythic background; the site praise in this section centers on Vastrāpathakṣetra in Prabhāsa.
None; it narrates Tāraka’s tyranny and the devas’ defeat.