Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 35
जह्येनमद्याशु महेंद्र दैत्यं दिवौकसां घोरतरं भयावहम् । फेनेन चैवाशु महासुरेन्द्रमपां समीपेन दुरासदेन
jahyenamadyāśu maheṃdra daityaṃ divaukasāṃ ghorataraṃ bhayāvaham | phenena caivāśu mahāsurendramapāṃ samīpena durāsadena
«Tue-le dès maintenant, vite, ô Mahendra : ce Daitya qui inspire aux dieux la plus terrible des frayeurs. Abats sans tarder ce grand seigneur des Asuras avec de l’écume, près des eaux : par ce moyen difficile à contrer.»
Ākāśavāṇī (divine voice) addressing Indra
Type: riverbank/ghat (implied)
Scene: A celestial injunction: Indra must slay Namuci not with ordinary weapons but with foam, and specifically near water—an ingenious, almost paradoxical method.
FAQs
Dharma is protected not only by strength but by right means (upāya) aligned with divine order; ingenuity can fulfill justice without violating constraints.
The verse references ‘near the waters’ as the tactical setting; it does not explicitly glorify a named tīrtha, though it sits within Kedārakhaṇḍa’s sacred Himalayan frame.
No ritual is prescribed; ‘foam near water’ is a narrative instruction for slaying Namuci.