Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 2
उत्तमं सर्वतीर्थानां गीर्वाणैर्वन्दितं शिवम् । गुह्याद्गुह्यतरं पुत्र नाख्यातं कस्यचिन्मया
uttamaṃ sarvatīrthānāṃ gīrvāṇairvanditaṃ śivam | guhyādguhyataraṃ putra nākhyātaṃ kasyacinmayā
হে পুত্ৰ, ই সকলো তীৰ্থৰ মাজত সৰ্বোত্তম—শিৱময় মঙ্গলদায়ক—দেৱতাসকলেও যাক বন্দনা কৰে। ই গোপনৰো অধিক গোপন; এতিয়ালৈকে মই কাকো প্ৰকাশ কৰা নাছিলোঁ।
Mārkaṇḍeya (deduced from immediate chapter transition where he speaks in 101.1)
Tirtha: Mārkaṇḍeśa
Type: kshetra
Listener: Pāṇḍu-nandana (a Pāṇḍava addressee, per subsequent verse address)
Scene: A revelation moment: Mārkaṇḍeya leans toward the listener, indicating secrecy; devas in the sky offer flowers toward a Śiva-liṅga by the Narmadā, suggesting the tīrtha’s supremacy.
FAQs
The Purāṇa frames certain tīrthas as divinely guarded secrets—approached with reverence, humility, and devotion to Śiva.
A supreme Śiva-associated tīrtha within the Revā (Narmadā) region; the precise site is introduced/expanded in the surrounding verses.
No specific rite is prescribed in this verse; it functions as a prelude announcing a hidden tīrtha’s greatness.