Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 34
अहो मूढतमा यूयं यदेतद्ब्राह्मणत्रयम् । वृथा मृत्युमवाप्नोति निग्रहे सुगमे सति
aho mūḍhatamā yūyaṃ yadetadbrāhmaṇatrayam | vṛthā mṛtyumavāpnoti nigrahe sugame sati
‘ہائے! تم تو نہایت گمراہ ہو—یہ تین برہمن بے وجہ موت کی طرف بڑھ رہے ہیں، حالانکہ روک تھام اور اصلاح آسانی سے ممکن ہے۔’
Śāṇḍilya (quoted within Sūta’s narration)
Type: kshetra
Listener: the assembled brāhmaṇas
Scene: Śāṇḍilya points toward or references three brāhmaṇas in peril; the crowd shows shock; the sage’s expression mixes grief and stern resolve.
FAQs
Dharma favors preventable, life-preserving correction and purification over needless self-destruction.
The instruction will point to Viṣṇupadī Gaṅgā in this sacred field as the accessible purifier.
The verse emphasizes ‘nigraha’ (restraint/prevention) as the immediate duty; specific expiations and Gaṅgā-snānā follow.