Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 34
वृषभान्भारसंयुक्तान्मध्याह्नेवाहयत्तु सः । क्षुत्तृट्श्रमपरीतांश्च दुर्बलान्क्रूरमानसः
vṛṣabhānbhārasaṃyuktānmadhyāhnevāhayattu saḥ | kṣuttṛṭśramaparītāṃśca durbalānkrūramānasaḥ
ด้วยใจอำมหิต เขาขับโคผู้แบกภาระหนักแม้ยามเที่ยงวัน; สัตว์ผู้อ่อนแรงถูกครอบงำด้วยความหิว กระหาย และความอ่อนล้า
Narrator (contextual; purāṇic narrator within Dharmāraṇya Khaṇḍa)
Scene: A harsh driver forces burdened oxen onward under the blazing midday sun; the animals droop with thirst and fatigue, dust rising from the path, foreshadowing divine retribution.
FAQs
Cruelty and exploitation—especially toward the weak—are clear signs of adharma and define karmic degradation.
The verse supports Dharmāraṇya’s māhātmya by showing how the sacred realm exposes and judges adharmic conduct.
None; it describes the sinful behavior that qualifies the man as ‘caṇḍāla by deeds’.