Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 31
भ्रमन्न निलवेगोऽसौ धर्मतीर्थं ततो ययौ । एवं षोडशवर्षाणि भ्रमतोऽस्य ययुस्तदा
bhramanna nilavego'sau dharmatīrthaṃ tato yayau | evaṃ ṣoḍaśavarṣāṇi bhramato'sya yayustadā
Ainsi Nīlavega, errant sans repos, se rendit au Dharmatīrtha. De cette manière, tandis qu’il allait de lieu en lieu, seize années s’écoulèrent pour lui.
Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator within Setu-khaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Dharmatīrtha
Type: ghat
Listener: Munīśvarāḥ / sages (addressed vocatively in the verse)
Scene: A restless rākṣasa-like figure (Nīlavega) traverses varied landscapes—coastline, groves, hermitages—finally approaching a serene tīrtha marked by steps, a small shrine, and ascetics; a subtle sense of sixteen years passing (seasonal cycles).
FAQs
Time ripens karma—wandering ends when one is drawn to a dharma-filled tīrtha where transformation becomes possible.
Dharmatīrtha, a sacred bathing/merit-bestowing ford described within the Setu-khaṇḍa.
No explicit rite is stated here; the verse sets the narrative context leading toward tīrtha-centered grace.