Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 22
बलेस्तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा उशना प्रत्युवाच तम् । अश्वमेधशतेनैव सुरराज्यं भविष्यति । दीक्षितस्य न संदेहस्तस्माद्भोक्त स एव च
balestadvacanaṃ śrutvā uśanā pratyuvāca tam | aśvamedhaśatenaiva surarājyaṃ bhaviṣyati | dīkṣitasya na saṃdehastasmādbhokta sa eva ca
Entendant les paroles de Bali, Uśanā (Śukra) lui répondit : «Par l’accomplissement de cent sacrifices Aśvamedha, la royauté sur les dieux adviendra assurément. Pour celui qui a été dûment consacré, il n’y a nul doute ; ainsi, lui seul en jouira.»
Uśanā (Śukra), guru of Bali
Scene: Śukra (Uśanā), the daitya-guru, calmly instructs Bali: perform a hundred Aśvamedhas to secure Indra’s sovereignty; ritual certainty emphasized by authoritative gesture.
FAQs
Ritual power in the Purāṇic worldview is tied to proper consecration (dīkṣā) and disciplined dharma; results follow ordained rites.
No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it focuses on sacrificial means to sovereignty.
The performance of a hundred Aśvamedha sacrifices, undertaken with proper dīkṣā (consecration).