Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 32
रक्ष यज्ञं हि दक्षस्य यज्ञोसि त्वं न संशयः । एतच्छ्रुत्वा तु वचनमृषीणां वै जनार्दनः
rakṣa yajñaṃ hi dakṣasya yajñosi tvaṃ na saṃśayaḥ | etacchrutvā tu vacanamṛṣīṇāṃ vai janārdanaḥ
«Protege o yajña de Dakṣa, pois tu és o próprio yajña, sem dúvida.» Ao ouvir as palavras dos sábios, Janārdana voltou sua atenção e respondeu.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating; embedded speech by the sages to Viṣṇu
Tirtha: Kedāra (narrative locus)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Internal interlocutor/audience (not explicit)
Scene: Sages urgently implore Janārdana to protect Dakṣa’s sacrifice; Janārdana listens, composed yet alert, as the sacrificial ground trembles with impending confrontation.
FAQs
Yajña is ultimately divine-centered; ritual succeeds when aligned with the Supreme, not merely with external performance.
Not explicitly; the verse belongs to Kedārakhaṇḍa’s narrative stream but focuses on the Dakṣa-yajña crisis.
A general injunction to ‘protect the yajña’ is voiced; no specific vrata, dāna, snāna, or japa is prescribed here.