Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 25
एवमुक्तो महादेवो देव्या वाक्यहिते रतः । कृत्वा कापालिकं रूपं ययौ दारुवनं प्रति
evamukto mahādevo devyā vākyahite rataḥ | kṛtvā kāpālikaṃ rūpaṃ yayau dāruvanaṃ prati
এইদৰে সম্বোধিত হৈ, দেৱীৰ বাক্য পূৰণত ৰত মহাদেৱে কাপালিকৰ ৰূপ ধৰি দাৰুবনৰ ফালে গ’ল।
Narrator (contextual; not explicitly marked in this verse)
Tirtha: Dāruvana
Type: kshetra
Scene: Mahādeva transforms into a Kāpālika—matted hair, ash-smeared body, skull-bowl and staff—then strides toward the dense Dāruvana where ascetics dwell.
FAQs
Divine līlā often uses disguise to teach dharma—Śiva adopts an ascetic form to demonstrate a deeper moral point.
Dāruvana (the sacred forest) is introduced as the key locale for the ensuing episode.
No ritual is prescribed; the verse narrates Śiva’s assumption of the Kāpālika form and his journey.
Read Skanda Purana in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with audio, word-by-word meanings, and more.