Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 7
अब्भक्षैर्वायुभक्षैश्च शीर्णपर्णाशिभिस्तथा । दन्तोलूखलिभिर्विप्रैः सेवितं चाश्मकुट्टकैः
abbhakṣairvāyubhakṣaiśca śīrṇaparṇāśibhistathā | dantolūkhalibhirvipraiḥ sevitaṃ cāśmakuṭṭakaiḥ
Ce bois sacré était fréquenté par des brahmanes aux vœux rigoureux : les uns ne vivaient que d’eau, les autres d’air, d’autres encore ne mangeaient que des feuilles tombées; certains broyaient avec les dents comme avec un mortier, et d’autres subsistaient de grains pilés sur la pierre—ainsi le lieu était-il servi par des ascètes austères.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) — deductive attribution from Purāṇic narrative style in Māhātmya passages
Type: kshetra
Scene: A ring of ascetics in a forest: one sipping only water, another in breath-control austerity, others gathering fallen leaves; a few grind grains on stone; faces lean, eyes bright, bodies disciplined.
FAQs
A tīrtha’s greatness is shown by the caliber of tapas practiced there—purity, restraint, and renunciation sanctify the land.
A sacred forest-āśrama within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya (the precise named tīrtha appears later in the narrative).
Not a ritual act but ascetic disciplines: living on water, air, fallen leaves, and minimal food prepared by stone-pounding.