Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3
सूत उवाच । बहुकालं प्रवाहः स सरस्वत्या द्विजोत्तमाः । महान्रक्तमयो जातो भूतराक्षससेवितः
sūta uvāca | bahukālaṃ pravāhaḥ sa sarasvatyā dvijottamāḥ | mahānraktamayo jāto bhūtarākṣasasevitaḥ
Sūta dit : «Ô meilleurs des deux-fois-nés, longtemps ce courant de Sarasvatī devint un vaste flot de sang, fréquenté par les bhūtas et les rākṣasas.»
Sūta
Tirtha: Sarasvatī-pravāha (afflicted stream)
Type: river
Listener: dvijottamas (assembly of brāhmaṇas)
Scene: The Sarasvatī’s flow is shown as a vast red torrent; bhūtas and rākṣasas haunt the banks while ascetics keep away, emphasizing a fallen sacred landscape.
FAQs
Even sacred places can appear defiled due to adharma or a curse, yet their restoration through ṛṣi-power and dharma reaffirms the supremacy of purification and grace.
The episode centers on a Sarasvatī-related tīrtha within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya, highlighting the sanctity of the river’s ford/flow despite temporary affliction.
No direct rite is prescribed in this verse; it sets the context of impurity that will be remedied through ṛṣi intervention and mantra in the following verses.