Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 2
पीत्वा वर्षसहस्रं वै कणधूमं सुदुःसहम् । यः प्राप्तवान्महाविद्यां मृत्युसंजीविनीं हरात्
pītvā varṣasahasraṃ vai kaṇadhūmaṃ suduḥsaham | yaḥ prāptavānmahāvidyāṃ mṛtyusaṃjīvinīṃ harāt
તેણે સહસ્ર વર્ષ સુધી અતિ દુઃસહ કણધૂમ્ર પીને, હર (શિવ) પાસેથી ‘મૃત્યુસંજીવની’ નામની મહાવિદ્યા પ્રાપ્ત કરી.
Gaṇas (attendants of Śiva)
Listener: Śivaśarman
Scene: Śukra performs extreme austerity—drinking harsh, smoky particulate fumes for a thousand years—until Śiva (Hara) bestows the Mṛtyu-saṃjīvinī vidyā; the scene contrasts ascetic suffering with the sudden radiance of divine revelation.
FAQs
Severe tapas and single-minded pursuit of divine grace can yield extraordinary spiritual knowledge.
No tīrtha is specified; the verse highlights the source of the vidyā—Hara (Śiva).
Tapas characterized by enduring extreme hardship for a prolonged period is implied as the means to attain the vidyā.