Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 57
वृषाङ्केन विमुक्तास्तु समरे दानवं प्रति । न संस्पृशन्ति शस्त्राणि गात्रं गौडवधूरिव
vṛṣāṅkena vimuktāstu samare dānavaṃ prati | na saṃspṛśanti śastrāṇi gātraṃ gauḍavadhūriva
वृषध्वजेन देवेन समरे दानवं प्रति मुक्तानि शस्त्राणि तस्य गात्रं न संस्पृशन्ति—यथा कुलीनगौडवधूः परपुरुषस्पर्शं न प्राप्नोति।
Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa)
Listener: A king (addressed as nṛpasattama)
Scene: Śiva with vṛṣa-dhvaja stands in the midst of battle; missiles and weapons streak toward him yet veer away or dissolve before touching his body; Andhaka’s forces recoil. A poetic inset suggests the ‘Gauḍa bride’ simile—untouched, dignified, inaccessible to improper advances.
FAQs
Adharma can appear resistant to ordinary measures; the Purāṇic message points to the need for divine insight and the destined resolution of karma.
The chapter belongs to the Revā Khaṇḍa connected with the Narmadā sacred corridor; this verse itself is a battle simile.
None.