Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 40
तद्देवस्य वचः श्रुत्वा नष्टास्ते बटवो नृप । गुरोस्तु पश्यतो राजन्धावमाना दिशो दश
taddevasya vacaḥ śrutvā naṣṭāste baṭavo nṛpa | gurostu paśyato rājandhāvamānā diśo daśa
அரசே! தேவனுடைய வாக்கைக் கேட்டவுடன் அந்தப் பட்டுக்கள் மறைந்தனர்; குரு பார்த்துக் கொண்டிருக்க, அரசே, அவர்கள் பத்து திசைகளிலும் ஓடினர்।
Narrative speaker not explicit in excerpt (addressing a king)
Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā)
Type: river
Listener: Nṛpa (king)
Scene: A guru watches as frightened brahmacārin boys scatter and vanish, running in all ten directions, as an unseen divine command reverberates in the air near a riverine hermitage.
FAQs
When conscience fails, fear arises; dharma is upheld by truthful commitment, not by fleeing consequences.
The verse continues the Narmadā-context narrative, though it focuses on the students’ reaction rather than praising a tirtha.
None; it narrates the immediate outcome of the announced vow-enforcement.