Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 83
एवं शप्तो मया ब्रह्मन्रावणो लोकरावणः । अर्चितं केवलं लिंगं विना तेन महात्मना
evaṃ śapto mayā brahmanrāvaṇo lokarāvaṇaḥ | arcitaṃ kevalaṃ liṃgaṃ vinā tena mahātmanā
Ainsi, ô brahmane, Rāvaṇa—fléau des mondes—fut maudit par moi. Pourtant, ce grand être n’adora que le liṅga seul, sans la pīṭhikā, le socle rituel qui doit l’accompagner.
Nandin (to the Devas/Suras)
Tirtha: Kedāra (frame)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Brahman interlocutor explicitly addressed (‘brahman’)
Scene: Rāvaṇa, despite being cursed, performs intense worship of a bare liṅga—without the proper base/adjunct—showing devotion but ritual incompleteness; the sage narrates with moral nuance.
FAQs
Even intense devotion can be ritually incomplete; Purāṇic dharma values both bhāva (devotion) and vidhi (right form) in worship.
Kedāra/Kedārnātha is the textual setting; the verse highlights liṅga-arcana themes central to Kedāra’s Śaiva identity.
It implies proper liṅga worship should include the appropriate base/seat (pīṭhikā/yoni) rather than ‘liṅga alone’.