Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 8
संस्नाप्यैतन्महालिंगं चन्दनेन विलिप्य च । संपूज्य पुष्पैर्विविधैर्गुग्गुलं दाहयेत्पुरः । सर्वपापविनिर्मुक्तो रुद्रलोके महीयते
saṃsnāpyaitanmahāliṃgaṃ candanena vilipya ca | saṃpūjya puṣpairvividhairguggulaṃ dāhayetpuraḥ | sarvapāpavinirmukto rudraloke mahīyate
Having bathed this great Liṅga, anointing it with sandalpaste, worshipping it with various flowers, and burning guggulu incense before it, one is freed from all sins and is honored in Rudra’s world.
Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration within Māheśvarakhaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Gautameśvara Mahāliṅga
Type: kshetra
Listener: Kuru-foremost (Kurūd-vaha)
Scene: A devotee performs abhiṣeka on the Mahāliṅga, then applies sandalpaste, heaps multicolored flowers, and burns guggulu incense in front; the sanctum is filled with fragrant smoke and lamp-light; a vision of Rudraloka or Śiva’s blessing is suggested above.
FAQs
Simple, sincere ritual service to Śiva—bathing, anointing, offering flowers and incense—purifies sin and leads to exalted spiritual destiny.
The shrine of the ‘mahāliṅga’ identified with Gautameśvara in this adhyāya’s local sacred geography.
Abhiṣeka (bathing the liṅga), candana-lepana (sandal anointing), puṣpārcana (flower worship), and guggulu-dhūpa (burning guggulu incense) are prescribed.