Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 6
वायुभक्षः शतं साग्रं यावत्तेपे हुताशनः । तावत्तुष्टो महादेवो वरदो जातवेदसः । संनिधौ समुपेत्याथ वचनं चेदमब्रवीत्
vāyubhakṣaḥ śataṃ sāgraṃ yāvattepe hutāśanaḥ | tāvattuṣṭo mahādevo varado jātavedasaḥ | saṃnidhau samupetyātha vacanaṃ cedamabravīt
Ne se nourrissant que d’air, Hutāśana accomplit des austérités pendant plus de cent ans. Alors Mahādeva, satisfait et prêt à accorder des grâces à Jātavedas, s’approcha de lui et prononça ces paroles.
Mārkaṇḍeya
Tirtha: Revā-tīrtha
Type: kshetra
Scene: Agni stands or sits emaciated yet luminous, sustained only by air for over a hundred years; then Mahādeva manifests nearby—majestic, calm, boon-bestowing—approaching into close presence (sannidhi).
FAQs
Sustained tapas, grounded in restraint, culminates in divine grace—Śiva responds as the compassionate giver of boons.
The austerity narrative is situated in the Revā-khaṇḍa setting and functions as the lead-in to Piṅgalāvarta/Piṅgaleśvara’s sanctification.
Tapas with severe restraint (vāyu-bhakṣa—subsisting on air) is described as Agni’s discipline.