Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 15
भक्षयंति यतः सर्पा अपराधं विना प्रजाः । वारिता अपि ते तस्मात्तान्निगृह्णामि सांप्रतम्
bhakṣayaṃti yataḥ sarpā aparādhaṃ vinā prajāḥ | vāritā api te tasmāttānnigṛhṇāmi sāṃpratam
“เพราะเหล่านาคย่อมเขมือบสัตว์ทั้งหลายแม้ไร้ความผิด และแม้ถูกห้ามก็ยังไม่ยับยั้ง; ฉะนั้นบัดนี้เราจักลงทัณฑ์และควบคุมพวกเขา”
Brahmā (implied by context; explicit in later verses)
Scene: Brahmā declares a decree against the serpents’ unprovoked devouring; devas look grave, nāga emissaries appear uneasy at the prospect of punishment.
FAQs
Dharma protects the innocent: violence without cause invites divine restraint and correction.
This verse functions as narrative groundwork within the Nāgara-khaṇḍa Tīrtha-māhātmya; no single tīrtha is named in this line.
None; the verse centers on ethical governance and restraint rather than a rite.