Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 41
प्रेष्यत्वेन रघुश्रेष्ठ सत्यमेतन्मयोदितम् । सीतायाः किं समादेश्यं न किंचित्संप्रयच्छसि । अपि स्वल्पतरं राम मया त्वं किं करिष्यसि
preṣyatvena raghuśreṣṭha satyametanmayoditam | sītāyāḥ kiṃ samādeśyaṃ na kiṃcitsaṃprayacchasi | api svalpataraṃ rāma mayā tvaṃ kiṃ kariṣyasi
โอ้ผู้ประเสริฐแห่งวงศ์รฆุ คำที่ข้าพเจ้ากล่าวในฐานะผู้รับใช้เป็นความจริง เมื่อพระองค์มิได้ประทานสิ่งใดเลย ข้าพเจ้าจะนำสารใดไปถึงนางสีดา? แม้เพียงเล็กน้อย โอ้พระราม—พระองค์จะให้ข้าพเจ้าทำสิ่งใดแทนพระองค์?
Lakṣmaṇa (Saumitrī), addressing Rāma
Type: kshetra
Scene: Lakṣmaṇa (or an attendant-figure) speaks earnestly to Rāma, emphasizing his role as servant and asking for a message or task for Sītā; the scene is charged but respectful.
FAQs
Even in righteous service (sevā), one should speak truthfully and seek clarity of duty (dharma) before acting.
The immediate sequence in this adhyāya leads toward Gokarṇa, a celebrated Śaiva tīrtha, though this verse itself is a narrative dialogue.
No explicit ritual is prescribed here; it is a dialogue setting up the journey and later tīrtha-oriented actions.