Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 45
पतिता मृगतृष्णायां मायया च वशीकृताः । वयं सर्वे च विबुधाः प्राज्ञाः पंडितमानिनः
patitā mṛgatṛṣṇāyāṃ māyayā ca vaśīkṛtāḥ | vayaṃ sarve ca vibudhāḥ prājñāḥ paṃḍitamāninaḥ
Tombés dans le mirage (mṛgatṛṣṇā) et asservis par l’enchantement de Māyā, nous tous—bien que savants et intelligents—ne faisons que nous croire de vrais érudits.
Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) (deduced: Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narration)
Tirtha: Kedāra / Kedāranātha
Type: kshetra
Listener: Devas/ṛṣis/pilgrims in Kedāra frame
Scene: A pilgrim-scholar with manuscripts and a proud posture walks toward a shimmering mirage that dissolves into Māyā’s veil; behind, Kedāra’s stark mountains and the liṅga shrine stand as the ‘real’; the scholar’s shadow morphs into a net, symbolizing bondage by self-conceit.
FAQs
Worldly confidence in learning can be mere self-conceit when the mind is still ruled by Māyā; true wisdom begins with recognizing one’s delusion.
The teaching occurs within the Kedārakhaṇḍa context, connected to Kedāra (Kedarnath) and its liberating Shaiva vision.
No direct ritual (snāna/dāna/japa) is stated here; it emphasizes inner discernment over illusion.