Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 64
यथा नास्तिकदुर्वृत्तो नानाशास्त्रोपदेशकान् । सोढुं शक्ता न ते वीरं महति स्यंदने स्थितम्
yathā nāstikadurvṛtto nānāśāstropadeśakān | soḍhuṃ śaktā na te vīraṃ mahati syaṃdane sthitam
Assim como um ateu de conduta corrompida não suporta mestres que instruem a partir de muitas escrituras, assim também eles não puderam resistir àquele herói, de pé em seu poderoso carro de guerra.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating to the sages
Scene: A split-vision allegory: foreground shows Tāraka steady on a massive chariot, devas unable to withstand him; background vignette shows a defiant nāstika turning away from calm teachers holding palm-leaf manuscripts, symbolizing rejection of śāstric counsel.
FAQs
Adharma resists śāstra and discipline; the impious mind cannot tolerate true instruction, just as divine hosts struggled before Tāraka’s force.
None is specified; the verse uses a dharma-ethical simile within the war narrative.
None; it is a moral comparison (dṛṣṭānta) rather than a ritual directive.