Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 9
स तपोबलमाविष्टो जिग्ये देवान्सवासवान् । जित्वा देवांस्ततः सर्वांस्ततः काले समागतः
sa tapobalamāviṣṭo jigye devānsavāsavān | jitvā devāṃstataḥ sarvāṃstataḥ kāle samāgataḥ
Erfüllt von der Kraft, die aus der Askese (tapas) geboren ist, besiegte er die Götter, selbst Indra unter ihnen. Nachdem er alle Devas bezwungen hatte, kam er zur rechten Zeit zur nächsten Begegnung.
Śiva
Tirtha: Tāla (origin narrative—conflict catalyst)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Devī (Pārvatī)
Scene: Mahendra, empowered by tapas, routs the devas including Indra; the devas retreat in disarray as the asura advances toward the next destined meeting—foreshadowing the Prabhāsa event that will generate the Tala origin.
FAQs
Power gained through discipline can subdue even celestial forces; dharma determines whether that power becomes protective or destructive.
Prabhāsa-kṣetra’s māhātmya, as the prelude to the manifestation linked with Tala-svāmin.
None; the verse narrates conquest as part of the tīrtha’s origin story.