Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1
ययातिरुवाच । चंडिकाया द्विजश्रेष्ठ कथं तत्राश्रमोऽभवत् । कस्मिन्काले फलं तेन किं दृष्टेन भवेन्नृणाम्
yayātiruvāca | caṃḍikāyā dvijaśreṣṭha kathaṃ tatrāśramo'bhavat | kasminkāle phalaṃ tena kiṃ dṛṣṭena bhavennṛṇām
Yayāti dit : « Ô le plus excellent des brāhmanes, comment l’āśrama de Caṇḍikā vint-il à se trouver en ce lieu ? En quel temps son fruit s’est-il manifesté, et quel bienfait revient aux hommes par la seule vision de ce sanctuaire ? »
King Yayāti
Tirtha: Caṇḍikā-āśrama
Type: kshetra
Listener: Dvijaśreṣṭha (best of brāhmaṇas)
Scene: King Yayāti, hands folded, questions a venerable brāhmaṇa about Caṇḍikā’s hermitage—its origin, the era of its fruit, and the benefit of mere sight; the hermitage lies in the background.
FAQs
Pilgrimage tradition values not only rituals but also ‘darśana’—the sanctifying power of seeing a holy place and knowing its origin.
Caṇḍikāśrama, whose origin and benefits are being requested.
None; it is an inquiry about time, origin, and the merit of darśana.