Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 76
स ते दास्यस्त्यसंदिग्धं त्यक्त्वा प्राणानतिप्रियान् । तस्यास्थिभिः प्रहरणं वज्राख्यं ते भविष्यति
sa te dāsyastyasaṃdigdhaṃ tyaktvā prāṇānatipriyān | tasyāsthibhiḥ praharaṇaṃ vajrākhyaṃ te bhaviṣyati
అతడు సందేహం లేకుండా నీకు ఇస్తాడు—అత్యంత ప్రియమైన ప్రాణాలనైనా విడిచి. అతని అస్తులతో ‘వజ్ర’ అనే ఆయుధం నీకు కలుగును।
Narrative context (pre-Sūta line); likely a divine adviser addressing Śakra (Indra)
Tirtha: Puṣkara
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śakra/Indra
Scene: The sage, unwavering, agrees to give up his life-breaths; his bones become the substance for the Vajra—an image of luminous transformation from mortality to indestructible dharma-weapon.
FAQs
The highest gift is self-offering: the sage’s renunciation becomes a protective force for the cosmos.
The episode is set within the Puṣkara region associated with Sarasvatī, praised in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya.
No formal rite is stated; the verse highlights dāna in its supreme form—self-sacrifice (ātma-tyāga) for dharma.