Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 38
तस्य सन्दर्शनार्थाय तीर्थयात्रापरायणः । तत्र मां दीनमालोक्य व्याधिग्रस्तं सुदुःखितम् । कश्चित्तत्राश्रयः प्राह तपस्वी कृपयान्वितः
tasya sandarśanārthāya tīrthayātrāparāyaṇaḥ | tatra māṃ dīnamālokya vyādhigrastaṃ suduḥkhitam | kaścittatrāśrayaḥ prāha tapasvī kṛpayānvitaḥ
In der Absicht, als Pilger jenes Heiligtum zu schauen, gelangte ich dorthin. Als man mich elend sah — von Krankheit befallen und in großem Schmerz — sprach ein mitleidsvoller Asket, der dort Zuflucht hatte, zu mir.
Kārpaṭika (ascetic/pilgrim narrator)
Listener: A king (nṛpa)
Scene: A weary pilgrim with visible skin affliction stands at the edge of a sacred precinct; a compassionate ascetic, matted-haired and serene, addresses him under a tree near a watercourse and shrine markers.
FAQs
In tīrtha traditions, grace often arrives through sādhus—compassionate guides who connect suffering people to Dharma and right practice.
The Nāgara-kṣetra pilgrimage setting is established; the exact tīrtha is named in the next verse.
No direct prescription yet; it prepares for the ascetic’s instruction about the proper time and manner of snāna.