Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 80
बर्बरीकशिरश्चैव गिरिशृंगमवाप्य तत् । देहस्य भूमिसंस्काराश्चाभवच्छिरसो नहि । ततो युद्धं महदभूत्कुरुपांडवसेनयोः
barbarīkaśiraścaiva giriśṛṃgamavāpya tat | dehasya bhūmisaṃskārāścābhavacchiraso nahi | tato yuddhaṃ mahadabhūtkurupāṃḍavasenayoḥ
Barbarīkas Haupt gelangte tatsächlich auf den Gipfel des Berges. Für seinen Leib wurden die Bestattungsriten der Beisetzung vollzogen, doch nicht für das Haupt. Danach erhob sich eine große Schlacht zwischen den Heeren der Kurus und der Pāṇḍavas.
Narrator (deduced: Lomaharṣaṇa/Sūta tradition in Māheśvarakhaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Barbarīka-śiras-śṛṅga (peak of the head)
Type: peak
Scene: A stark mountain summit with Barbarīka’s head placed or arriving miraculously; below, funeral rites for the body; in the distance, armies assembling for a vast war.
FAQs
Even extraordinary warriors and events remain subject to dharma and destiny; the narrative frames war and death within cosmic order rather than mere human pride.
No distinct tīrtha is explicitly named in this verse; the setting is the Kurukṣetra war context within a Purāṇic narration.
It mentions bhūmi-saṃskāra—funerary/burial rites performed for the body (but not for the head).