Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 16
कुलधर्माञ्ज्ञातिधर्मान्देशधर्मान्महेश्वर । ये त्यजंति च तेऽवश्यं कुलाच्च पतिता जनाः
kuladharmāñjñātidharmāndeśadharmānmaheśvara | ye tyajaṃti ca te'vaśyaṃ kulācca patitā janāḥ
โอ้พระมหेशวร ผู้ใดละทิ้งธรรมแห่งตระกูล ธรรมแห่งญาติ และธรรมแห่งแผ่นดิน ผู้นั้นย่อมตกต่ำเป็นแน่—ตกต่ำแม้จากหมู่ชนของตนเอง
A devotee/interlocutor addressing Śiva as “Maheśvara” (deduced from direct vocative)
Scene: A devotee speaks with folded hands to Maheśvara; behind them are three symbolic circles labeled kula, jñāti, deśa—like protective mandalas; outside lies a shadowed exile representing ‘kula-patana’.
FAQs
Spiritual life includes honoring one’s inherited, kin-based, and regional dharmas; rejecting them leads to social and moral fall.
No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it supports the dharma frame surrounding tīrtha glorification.
None; the verse stresses adherence to multiple layers of dharma (family, kin, regional).