Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1
सूत उवाच । अथ तां यौवनोपेतां स्वसुतां प्रेक्ष्य पार्थिवः । अनौपम्येन रूपेण संयुक्तां वरवर्णिनीम् । आनर्तश्चिन्तयामास कन्यकां प्रददाम्यहम्
sūta uvāca | atha tāṃ yauvanopetāṃ svasutāṃ prekṣya pārthivaḥ | anaupamyena rūpeṇa saṃyuktāṃ varavarṇinīm | ānartaścintayāmāsa kanyakāṃ pradadāmyaham
قال سوتا: «ثم إن ملكَ آنَرْتَة، لما رأى ابنته وقد بلغت سنَّ الشباب—مقرونةً بجمالٍ لا مثيل له وبحُسنِ لونٍ بهيّ—أخذ يتفكّر: “لمن أزوّج هذه الفتاة؟”»
Sūta
Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (episode context)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and the Naimiṣāraṇya sages (implied)
Scene: A king in council gazes at his grown daughter—radiant, adorned—while pondering suitable suitors; palace pillars, attendants, and a quiet, thoughtful mood.
FAQs
It frames marriage as a dhārmic responsibility of rulers and families—seeking a worthy match rather than acting impulsively.
No particular tīrtha is named in this verse; it sets up the narrative within the broader Tīrthamāhātmya.
No explicit ritual is prescribed; the verse introduces the intention to perform kanyādāna (giving the maiden in marriage).