Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 10
देवा ऊचुः । भगवन्भार्गवे वंशे जातः कोऽपि महाद्युतिः । अग्निरूपेण सर्वं स ददाह वसुधातलम् । कृतो यत्नः पुराऽस्माभिस्तद्विनाशाय सत्तम । जलेन वृद्धिमायाति ततो नो भयमागतम्
devā ūcuḥ | bhagavanbhārgave vaṃśe jātaḥ ko'pi mahādyutiḥ | agnirūpeṇa sarvaṃ sa dadāha vasudhātalam | kṛto yatnaḥ purā'smābhistadvināśāya sattama | jalena vṛddhimāyāti tato no bhayamāgatam
Les dieux dirent : «Ô Bienheureux, dans la lignée des Bhārgava est né quelqu’un d’un éclat immense. Sous la forme du feu, il a brûlé toute la surface de la terre. Jadis nous avons tenté de le détruire, ô le meilleur des justes ; mais il grandit par l’eau—c’est pourquoi la peur s’est abattue sur nous.»
Devas
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and ṛṣis (contextual)
Scene: Devas address Brahmā: a radiant, terrifying Bhārgava ‘fire-being’ is described; in the background, symbolic earth scorched, and rain feeding flames—an impossible paradox illustrated as water turning to fuel.
FAQs
Unchecked power—even when born of tapas—must be guided by dharma; cosmic order is maintained through higher counsel and restraint.
Prabhāsakṣetra is the narrative frame; the episode functions as part of its māhātmya tradition within the Skanda Purāṇa.
No direct rite is prescribed; the verse references Agniṣṭoma-type sacrifices only in the next passage as endangered due to devastation.