Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 74
चौर्ये तु तंदुला देया न चान्यत्र कथंचन । तंदुलानुदके सिक्त्वा रात्रौ तत्रैव स्थापयेत्
caurye tu taṃdulā deyā na cānyatra kathaṃcana | taṃdulānudake siktvā rātrau tatraiva sthāpayet
திருட்டு வழக்கில் தண்டுலம் (அரிசித் தானியம்) மட்டுமே பயன்படுத்த வேண்டும்; வேறு எதையும் எவ்விதத்திலும் அல்ல. தண்டுலங்களை நீரால் தெளித்து, இரவு முழுவதும் அங்கேயே வைக்க வேண்டும்.
Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), by Mahēśvarakhaṇḍa context
Scene: A tray of rice-grains is sprinkled with water and placed in a designated spot for the night, guarded or left under ritual watch, preparing for the dawn test in a theft case.
FAQs
Dharma requires careful, rule-bound means for resolving suspicion; purity tests must follow prescribed restraints rather than arbitrary methods.
The broader passage points to Bhaṭṭāditya’s sacred presence/place, before whom the divya (ordeal) is performed.
Use only rice-grains, sprinkle them with water, and keep them in that place overnight as part of a theft-related divya procedure.