Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 149
प्रहस्यो वाच भगवान्भार्गवाणां महातपाः । बलिनं बालिशं मत्वा शुक्रो बुद्धिमतां वरः
prahasyo vāca bhagavānbhārgavāṇāṃ mahātapāḥ | balinaṃ bāliśaṃ matvā śukro buddhimatāṃ varaḥ
Souriant, le vénérable Śukra—grand ascète et le plus éminent des Bhārgavas—prit la parole, jugeant que Bali, bien que puissant, demeurait encore naïf.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating; Śukra is the direct speaker within the story
Tirtha: Kedāra-kṣetra (frame)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Text’s frame listener; within story, Bali is the addressee about to be instructed
Scene: Śukra smiles gently, preparing to speak; he is portrayed as venerable, ascetic, and intellectually superior, while Bali stands powerful yet impressionable.
FAQs
Power without discernment is incomplete; true wisdom guides strength toward dharma.
This verse is narrative setup within Kedārakhaṇḍa; the explicit tīrtha praise appears in the surrounding Narmadā–tīrtha context later in the passage.
No direct ritual is prescribed in this verse; it introduces Śukra’s counsel that leads to sacrificial acts.