Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 67
सर्वपापाधिकं पापं बालहत्या द्विजोत्तम । बालहत्यायुतो विप्रः पच्यते नरके ध्रुवम्
sarvapāpādhikaṃ pāpaṃ bālahatyā dvijottama | bālahatyāyuto vipraḥ pacyate narake dhruvam
การฆ่าเด็กเป็นบาปที่ยิ่งใหญ่กว่าบาปทั้งปวง โอ ผู้ประเสริฐในหมู่พราหมณ์ พราหมณ์ผู้แปดเปื้อนด้วยการฆ่าเด็กย่อมถูกเผาไหม้ในนรกอย่างแน่นอน
Unspecified narrator within Revā Khaṇḍa (ethical injunction addressed to a dvija)
Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra tīrthas (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A stern dharma proclamation: the sage addresses ‘dvijottama’ and depicts the inevitability of naraka for bāla-hatyā, with imagery of hellfire ‘cooking’ as a moral deterrent.
FAQs
Ahiṃsā is foundational; harming the helpless (especially children) is presented as an extreme adharma with severe karmic retribution.
No specific tīrtha is named; the verse is part of Revā Khaṇḍa’s broader dharma instruction within the Narmadā sacred geography.
No explicit ritual is stated; the verse functions as a strict prohibition and moral warning.