Shloka 29
सृष्टिविस्तारप्रश्नः (Sṛṣṭi-vistāra-praśnaḥ) — The Detailed Inquiry into Creation
तस्य शाखो विशाखश्च नैगमेयश्च पृष्ठतः । अपत्यं कृत्तिकानां तु कार्तिकेय इति स्मृतः
tasya śākho viśākhaśca naigameyaśca pṛṣṭhataḥ | apatyaṃ kṛttikānāṃ tu kārtikeya iti smṛtaḥ
From him were born Śākha and Viśākha, and behind them was born Naigameya. But the child of the Kṛttikās is remembered by the name Kārttikeya.
Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Umāpati
Sthala Purana: Kārttikeya is identified through his nurturing by the Kṛttikās (Pleiades), a hallmark of the Skanda birth-cycle that legitimizes his divine status and cosmic role as commander of the devas.
Significance: Meditation on Kārttikeya as Kṛttikā-aptya is traditionally linked with gaining valor, clarity, and protection from hostile forces.
Type: stotra
Shakti Form: Pārvatī
Role: nurturing
Offering: pushpa
FAQs
The verse preserves the sacred naming and lineage of Skanda—Kārttikeya—showing how divine births and names reveal specific cosmic roles; remembering these names is treated as smṛti-based devotion that strengthens bhakti toward Shiva’s divine family.
Kārttikeya is presented as a manifest (saguṇa) divine power associated with Shiva’s household; honoring Shiva through the Linga naturally includes reverence to Shiva’s attendant divine beings, with Skanda revered as an extension of Shiva’s protective and victorious energy.
A simple practice is nāma-smaraṇa (repetition) of “Kārttikeya/Skanda” alongside Shiva’s Panchakshara (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), offered with bhakti—optionally with vibhūti (tripuṇḍra) and rudrākṣa as Shaiva markers.