Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 48
ततो जगामाशु महाधनुर्द्धरो विस्फार्य चापं कुसुमान्वितं महत् । तथैव बाणांश्च मनोरमांश्च प्रगृह्य वीरो भुवनैकजेता । तस्मिन्हिमाद्रौ परिदृश्यमानोऽवनौ स्मरो योधयतां वरिष्ठः
tato jagāmāśu mahādhanurddharo visphārya cāpaṃ kusumānvitaṃ mahat | tathaiva bāṇāṃśca manoramāṃśca pragṛhya vīro bhuvanaikajetā | tasminhimādrau paridṛśyamāno'vanau smaro yodhayatāṃ variṣṭhaḥ
Then he went swiftly, bearing the great bow—drawing tight that mighty bow adorned with flowers—and taking up charming arrows as well. That hero, the sole conqueror of the worlds, was seen there on the Himalayan mountain: Smara, foremost among those who wage battle by enchantment.
Sūta (narration; deduced)
Tirtha: Himādri within Kedāra-kṣetra frame
Type: peak
Listener: Ṛṣis (frame)
Scene: Madana on the Himalayan slope, drawing a massive flower-adorned bow; he holds charming arrows, poised like a warrior, yet his ‘battle’ is enchantment. The snowy peaks witness the paradox of beauty as weapon.
FAQs
It dramatizes desire’s seductive power, preparing the theological point that Śiva’s yogic mastery transcends even the most refined enchantments.
The Himālaya (Himādri) sacred landscape, within the Kedārakhaṇḍa’s pilgrimage geography tied to Kedāra.
None.