स्कंद उवाच । कारणं ब्रूहि नोद्य त्वमश्वाननः कथं हरिः । महारिपोश्च हंता च देवदेवो जगत्पतिः
skaṃda uvāca | kāraṇaṃ brūhi nodya tvamaśvānanaḥ kathaṃ hariḥ | mahāripośca haṃtā ca devadevo jagatpatiḥ
Skanda sprach: Sage uns heute den Grund—wie wurde Hari, der Herr der Herren und Lenker des Weltalls, der Bezwinger des großen Feindes, pferdegesichtig?
Skanda
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya
Type: kshetra
Listener: A sage/fortunate interlocutor (addressed as mahābhāga)
Scene: A forest hermitage setting: Skanda, radiant and youthful, questions a sage about Hari’s horse-faced manifestation; ascetics, sacrificial fire, and sacred trees frame the inquiry.
Divine forms may appear unusual, yet they arise from purposeful compassion and cosmic protection.
No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it introduces a sacred narrative within the Dharmāraṇya context.
None explicitly; the verse functions as a doctrinal question initiating the account.