Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 46
कूपमेकं समाश्रित्य गम्भीरं जलदोपमम् । एतस्मिन्नेव काले तु मया दृष्टः समीपगः । तोयाकारो मरु द्देशस्तश्चित्ते विचिन्तितम्
kūpamekaṃ samāśritya gambhīraṃ jaladopamam | etasminneva kāle tu mayā dṛṣṭaḥ samīpagaḥ | toyākāro maru ddeśastaścitte vicintitam
ولذتُ ببئرٍ واحدةٍ عميقةٍ تشبه سحابةَ الماء. وفي ذلك الوقت بعينه رأيتُ قريبًا أرضَ صحراءٍ تبدو كأنها ماء، فتفكّرتُ في الأمر في قلبي.
Unspecified narrator within Nāgara-khaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya
Type: kund
Scene: A deep stone-lined well shaded by a small structure; nearby shimmering heat creates a sheet-like mirage resembling water; the narrator gazes and reflects, hand to forehead, desert stretching beyond.
FAQs
Apparent ‘water’ in the desert can be illusion; true refuge is found in real sources sustained by dharma and, ultimately, divine grace.
A kūpa (well) is central, but its proper tīrtha-name is not given in this isolated verse.
None explicitly; the verse describes approaching a well and recognizing the deceptive appearance of water nearby.