Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 30
श्रीभगवानुवाच । माघमासस्य कृष्णायां चतुर्दश्यां सुरेश्वर । अहं यास्यामि भूपृष्ठे रात्रौ नैव दिवा कलौ
śrībhagavānuvāca | māghamāsasya kṛṣṇāyāṃ caturdaśyāṃ sureśvara | ahaṃ yāsyāmi bhūpṛṣṭhe rātrau naiva divā kalau
Le Seigneur Bienheureux dit : Ô souverain des dieux, au quatorzième jour lunaire de la quinzaine sombre du mois de Māgha, J’irai à la surface de la terre—la nuit, non le jour—en l’âge de Kali.
Śiva (Śrī Bhagavān)
Tirtha: Māgha-kṛṣṇa-caturdaśī (Śivarātri night)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Sureśvara (Indra or lord of devas)
Scene: Śrī Bhagavān (Śiva) declares his descent on Māgha dark-fortnight fourteenth, specifically at night; the scene shows a cosmic calendar motif, moon waning, and Śiva moving from celestial realm toward earth under a starry sky.
FAQs
Śivarātri is divinely appointed as a night of special access to Śiva’s presence, especially meaningful in Kali Yuga.
The verse sanctifies a sacred time (Māgha kṛṣṇa caturdaśī night) rather than naming a single tīrtha.
Night-focused worship on Māgha kṛṣṇa caturdaśī (Śivarātri context), emphasizing nocturnal observance.