Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 23
कदा पश्यति तीर्थं वै कदा नस्तारयिष्यति । इति प्रतीक्षां कुर्वन्ति पुत्राणां सततं नृप । शूलभेदे नरः स्नात्वा दृष्ट्वा शूलधरं सकृत्
kadā paśyati tīrthaṃ vai kadā nastārayiṣyati | iti pratīkṣāṃ kurvanti putrāṇāṃ satataṃ nṛpa | śūlabhede naraḥ snātvā dṛṣṭvā śūladharaṃ sakṛt
«Quand verra-t-il le gué sacré—quand nous fera-t-il passer vers la délivrance ?» Ainsi, ô Roi, les ancêtres attendent sans cesse leurs fils. Mais à Śūlabheda, dès qu’un homme s’y est baigné et qu’une seule fois il a contemplé le Seigneur qui porte le trident, la délivrance est certaine.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) addressing a King (nṛpa) (deduced from vocative nṛpa)
Tirtha: Śūlabheda
Type: kshetra
Listener: Nṛpa (King)
Scene: A son-pilgrim reaches a forested ford named Śūlabheda, bathes, and beholds Śiva as Śūladhara; in the subtle background, pitṛs wait with uplifted hands, their faces turning from anxiety to relief.
FAQs
Pilgrimage and devotion are portrayed as acts of filial responsibility that uplift the pitṛs; Śiva-darśana is especially salvific.
Śūlabheda-tīrtha, where bathing and seeing Śiva (Śūladhara) grants deliverance to one’s ancestral line.
Snāna (ritual bath) at Śūlabheda and darśana of Śiva, even once.