Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 29
त्वत्प्रसादेन वै त्राताः सम्यक्छुद्धा महामुने । यदानीता त्वया गंगा गौतमी भूतलं प्रति
tvatprasādena vai trātāḥ samyakchuddhā mahāmune | yadānītā tvayā gaṃgā gautamī bhūtalaṃ prati
By your grace, O great sage, we have been saved and wholly purified—since you brought the Gaṅgā down to the earth as the Gautamī.
Tīrthas/Rivers and Holy Sites (collectively) addressing Gautama
Tirtha: Gautamī (Godāvarī)
Type: river
Listener: Not specified in excerpt
Scene: Rivers and devas address Gautama with folded hands, praising him for bringing the Gaṅgā to earth as the Gautamī; behind them a luminous river descends from celestial heights into earthly terrain, symbolizing grace and purification.
FAQs
The grace of a mahāmuni can manifest as sacred geography itself, turning the world into a field of purification.
Gautamī—Gaṅgā’s manifestation on earth associated with Sage Gautama (often identified in Purāṇic tradition with the Godāvarī tīrtha-complex).
Not explicit; the verse grounds later tīrtha-practices (snāna, worship) in the sanctity of Gautamī.