Adhyaya 158
Chapter 158 records Īśvara’s itinerary-like guidance to Anangeśvara, said to lie a “bow-shot” in front of Ratneśvara. The liṅga there is declared to have been established by Kāmadeva (also called Viṣṇu’s son), and the shrine is portrayed as a Vaiṣṇava-associated holy place, especially potent in Kali-yuga for cleansing moral defilements. The phala is stated plainly: by seeing and worshiping Anangeśvara one gains Kāmadeva-like attractiveness and social charm, with the blessing extending even to one’s lineage, easing misfortune or a perceived lack of auspiciousness. A calendrical observance is also given—special worship through a vrata on Ananga-trayodaśī—praised as a cause of “birth-fulfillment” (janma-sāphalya). The chapter completes the pilgrimage’s ethical economy by prescribing śayyā-dāna (the gift of a bed) to a virtuous brāhmaṇa, with greater merit when the recipient is a Viṣṇu-bhakta, thus linking shrine visitation to disciplined generosity and worthy recipients.
Shlokas
Verse 1
ईश्वर उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्महादेवि अनंगेश्वरमुत्तमम् । रत्नेश्वरादग्रतःस्थं धनुषान्तरमास्थितम्
Īśvara said: Then, O great Goddess, one should go to the excellent Anaṅgeśvara, situated in front of Ratneśvara, at the distance of a bowshot.
Verse 2
स्थापितं कामदेवेन तल्लिंगं विष्णुसूनुना । ज्ञात्वा तद्वैष्णवं स्थानं कलौ पातकनाशनम्
That liṅga was established by Kāmadeva, the son of Viṣṇu. Knowing that place to be Vaiṣṇava in character, one finds it a destroyer of sins in the age of Kali.
Verse 3
तं दृष्ट्वा पूजयित्वा तु कामदेवसमो भवेत् । स्वर्गविद्याधरीणां च जायते चित्तमोहकः
Having seen Him and worshipped Him, one becomes equal to Kāmadeva; and even among the celestial Vidyādharīs, one becomes captivating to the mind.
Verse 4
तस्यान्वयेऽपि न भवेत्कुरूपो दुर्भगोऽपि वा
Even in his lineage, none will be ugly in form or unfortunate.
Verse 5
तत्रानंगत्रयोदश्यां व्रतेन वरवर्णिनि । विशेषाराधनं तत्र जन्मसाफल्यकारणम्
There, on Anaṅga-trayodaśī, O fair-complexioned lady, special worship performed with a vow becomes a cause for making one’s life truly fulfilled.
Verse 6
शय्यादानं तु दातव्यं तत्र विप्राय शीलिने । विशेषाद्विष्णुभक्ताय सम्यग्यात्राफलं लभेत्
In that sacred place, one should offer the gift of a bed to a virtuous brāhmaṇa—especially to a devotee of Viṣṇu. By doing so, one truly attains the complete fruit of the pilgrimage.
Verse 158
इति श्रीस्कांदे महापुराण एकाशीतिसाहस्र्यां संहितायां सप्तमे प्रभास खंडे प्रथमे प्रभासक्षेत्रमाहात्म्ये रत्नेश्वरमाहात्म्येऽनंगेश्वरमाहात्म्यवर्णनंनामाष्टपंचाशदुत्तरशततमोऽध्यायः
Thus ends, in the venerable Skanda Mahāpurāṇa—within the collection of eighty-one thousand verses—the one-hundred-and-fifty-eighth chapter in the seventh book, the Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa, in the first division called the Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, entitled ‘The Description of the Greatness of Anaṅgeśvara’ within the Ratneśvara Māhātmya.