Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 24
दुष्टान्पालय साधूंश्च स्वर्गमेवमवाप्स्यसि । बलं च लभ्यते पुत्र देवीनां सुप्रसादतः
duṣṭānpālaya sādhūṃśca svargamevamavāpsyasi | balaṃ ca labhyate putra devīnāṃ suprasādataḥ
بدکاروں کو روک کر ان پر حکمرانی کرو اور نیکوں کی حفاظت کرو—یوں تم سُوَرگ (جنت) پاؤ گے۔ اور اے بیٹے، دیویوں کی خوشنودی اور کرم سے قوت بھی حاصل ہوتی ہے۔
Unspecified adviser (contextual instruction to Barbarīka; narrative within Māheśvarakhaṇḍa)
Scene: Twofold tableau: a ruler restrains a wrongdoer with measured authority while sheltering sages/virtuous people; above or behind, Devī’s benign presence indicates the source of strength.
FAQs
Righteous power is justified when used to restrain wrongdoing and protect the good, and true strength is rooted in divine grace.
No specific tīrtha is named yet; the text soon points to a particular sacred kṣetra for Devī worship.
Implicitly, seeking Devī’s favor (ārādhana) as the means to obtain strength.