Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 6
ईश्वर उवाच । डिंडि रूपः पुरा देवि भूत्वाऽहं दारुके वने । ऋषीणामाश्रमे पुण्ये नग्नो भिक्षाचरोऽभवम् । भिक्षंतमाश्रमे दृष्ट्वा ताः सर्वा ऋषियोषितः
īśvara uvāca | ḍiṃḍi rūpaḥ purā devi bhūtvā'haṃ dāruke vane | ṛṣīṇāmāśrame puṇye nagno bhikṣācaro'bhavam | bhikṣaṃtamāśrame dṛṣṭvā tāḥ sarvā ṛṣiyoṣitaḥ
Īśvara bersabda: Wahai Dewi, dahulu kala Aku mengambil rupa ḍiṃḍi dan pergi ke hutan Dāruka. Di āśrama suci para ṛṣi Aku menjadi pengemis telanjang, memohon sedekah. Melihat Aku mengemis di āśrama, semua istri para ṛṣi pun menaruh perhatian.
Īśvara (Śiva)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (narrative frame) / Dārukāvana episode locus
Type: kshetra
Listener: Devī (Pārvatī)
Scene: Śiva, disguised as a naked ash-smeared mendicant with matted locks, enters a serene sages’ hermitage in a forest; startled yet fascinated sages’ wives notice him as he begs for alms.
FAQs
External appearance can provoke attachment or aversion; true dharma is tested in how one responds—with restraint, discernment, and purity.
The narrative points to Dārukavana/Devadāruvana-linked sacred geography that underlies the Prabhāsa Kṣetra Māhātmya’s shrine-origins.
None; it begins an origin story explaining later events (anger, curse, and liṅga-pātana).