Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 7
स ज्ञात्वा मानुषेणात्र भवितव्यमसंशयम् । न शून्याः पशवो रात्रौ स्थास्यंति विजने वने
sa jñātvā mānuṣeṇātra bhavitavyamasaṃśayam | na śūnyāḥ paśavo rātrau sthāsyaṃti vijane vane
اس نے بے شک جان لیا کہ یہاں انسان کی موجودگی ضرور ہے؛ کیونکہ سنسان جنگل میں رات کے وقت جانور بے نگہبان ٹھہر نہیں سکتے۔
Sūta (deduced)
Type: kshetra
Listener: dvijoत्तमāḥ (addressed audience: best of brāhmaṇas)
Scene: A solitary figure in a dark, sparse forest at night, watching a small herd; the animals cluster uneasily, suggesting an unseen human presence nearby; moonlight filters through trees.
FAQs
Dharma is recognized through signs: protection and order are inferred where fearlessness appears; guardianship is a moral expectation in society.
The forested kṣetra around Ajāgṛha, where the goats’ behavior signals a protected sacred zone.
None; it highlights the practical dharma of vigilance/protection rather than a formal rite.