Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 51
कथं स्याद्धर्मश्रवणं कथं वा जीवनं भवेत् । एतस्मिन्मे मनो विद्धंखिद्यतेऽज्ञानसंकटे
kathaṃ syāddharmaśravaṇaṃ kathaṃ vā jīvanaṃ bhavet | etasminme mano viddhaṃkhidyate'jñānasaṃkaṭe
தர்மத்தைச் செவிமடுக்குவது எவ்வாறு, வாழ்க்கை எவ்வாறு நிலைக்கும்? இந்த அஞ்ஞானச் சிக்கலில் என் மனம் காயமுற்றதுபோல் துயருறுகிறது.
Unspecified questioner (lamenting confusion before the reply begins at v.53)
Listener: Bāla (about to respond)
Scene: A seeker sits with bowed head, hand to chest as if wounded; around him a dense forest labeled ‘ajñāna’ with thorny vines; in the distance, a sage’s hut with a faint lamp of dharma-kathā.
FAQs
It expresses the seeker’s anguish: ignorance blocks both understanding dharma and living rightly.
None is mentioned; the focus is inner struggle rather than pilgrimage geography.
No ritual is stated; the verse is a confession of spiritual difficulty prompting instruction.