Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 18
सापवादो रणं त्यक्त्वा मृतो यस्मान्नराधिप । सप्तयोनिषु ते जन्म तस्माज्जातं मया सह
sāpavādo raṇaṃ tyaktvā mṛto yasmānnarādhipa | saptayoniṣu te janma tasmājjātaṃ mayā saha
اے مردوں کے حاکم، جو ملامت اٹھا کر میدانِ جنگ چھوڑ کر مر گیا، وہ سات یونیوں میں پیدا ہوتا رہا؛ اسی سبب وہ میرے ساتھ ہی (اسی گردشِ جنم میں) پیدا ہوا۔
A female figure speaking to the king (implied by later verses: ‘tvāṃ vinā me patiḥ…’)
Listener: A king (narādhipa)
Scene: A warrior drops his weapons and turns away from the battlefield; shadowy figures point in reproach; behind him, a symbolic sequence of seven wombs/embryonic forms indicates repeated rebirth.
FAQs
Actions that violate one’s dharma—here, deserting battle—can yield blame and prolonged karmic consequence across repeated births.
The narrative is situated within the Vastrāpatha-kṣetra māhātmya of Prabhāsa, where karmic stories underscore the tirtha’s moral framework.
No direct ritual is stated; the verse teaches karmic causality tied to dharma.