Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 23
पृथ्वी सागरपर्यंता दृष्टा सर्वा तदानघ । महीनाम नदी पुण्या सर्वतीर्थमयी शुभा
pṛthvī sāgaraparyaṃtā dṛṣṭā sarvā tadānagha | mahīnāma nadī puṇyā sarvatīrthamayī śubhā
हे निष्पाप! मैंने समुद्र-पर्यन्त समस्त पृथ्वी देखी। वहाँ ‘मही’ नाम की एक पुण्य नदी है—शुभ, पवित्र, और समस्त तीर्थों की शक्ति से परिपूर्ण।
Bhṛgu (contextual, continuing narration to Nārada)
Tirtha: Mahī-nadī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Nārada
Scene: Bhṛgu describes the earth surveyed to the ocean’s rim, then points to the Mahī as a luminous ribbon of water, surrounded by tīrtha-symbols (miniature shrines, sages, and devas) suggesting ‘all tīrthas within’.
FAQs
Certain sacred rivers are portrayed as concentrated sanctuaries—approaching them is akin to visiting many tīrthas at once.
Mahī-nadī is praised as sarvatīrthamayī (embodying all tīrthas).
No explicit rite here; it establishes the river’s exceptional sanctity, implying pilgrimage and bathing will be meritorious.