Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 11
श्रीभगवानुवाच । तव वीर्येण संतुष्टो धर्मेण च विशेषतः । वरं वरय भद्रं ते नित्यं यो हृदये स्थितः
śrībhagavānuvāca | tava vīryeṇa saṃtuṣṭo dharmeṇa ca viśeṣataḥ | varaṃ varaya bhadraṃ te nityaṃ yo hṛdaye sthitaḥ
The Blessed Lord said: “I am satisfied with your valor, and especially with your righteousness (dharma). Choose a boon; may good be yours—I am the One who ever abides within the heart.”
Śiva (Śrī Bhagavān / Maheśvara)
Listener: Bhadrakarṇa
Scene: The Lord, radiant and composed, addresses the devotee Bhadrakarṇa, praising his valor and righteousness and inviting him to choose a boon; the sense is intimate—God as indweller of the heart.
FAQs
Śiva’s grace is won not merely by strength but by dharma; the Lord is also affirmed as the indwelling presence in the heart.
The Bhadrakarṇa sacred setting is elevated as a place associated with Śiva’s direct boon-giving and approval of dharmic conduct.
No explicit rite; the verse presents the boon-bestowing moment and the virtues (vīrya and dharma) that lead to it.