Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 50
स्वभाव एव क्रूराणां नास्तिकानां दुरात्मनाम् । आत्मानं पातयंत्येव पातयंत्यपरं च यत्
svabhāva eva krūrāṇāṃ nāstikānāṃ durātmanām | ātmānaṃ pātayaṃtyeva pātayaṃtyaparaṃ ca yat
கொடூரரும் நாஸ்திகரும் தீய மனத்தாரும் இயல்பே இதுவே—அவர்கள் தம்மையே வீழ்ச்சிக்குக் காரணமாகி, பிறரையும் வீழ்த்துவார்கள்.
Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) (deduced)
Scene: Allegorical image: a cruel man cuts the branch he sits on while also pulling another person down; dharma is depicted as a steady tree, adharma as an axe that rebounds.
FAQs
Cruelty and denial of dharma are self-destructive and socially destructive; such traits cause one’s fall and harm others.
No tīrtha is mentioned; the verse delivers a general dharmic maxim within the narrative.
None; it functions as a moral warning about character and consequence.