Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 9
अभीष्टदेवताश्चैव प्रणम्य गुरुसत्तमम् । नमस्कृत्य शुभान्देवान्रामादींश्च विशेषतः
abhīṣṭadevatāścaiva praṇamya gurusattamam | namaskṛtya śubhāndevānrāmādīṃśca viśeṣataḥ
自らの選び敬う神々に礼拝し、最勝の師（グル）に五体投地して、吉祥なる諸神、とりわけラーマらに恭しく帰敬した。
Narrative voice (contextual; likely Sūta continuing the maṅgalācaraṇa-style preface)
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya (implied by section)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis at Naimiṣāraṇya (standard Sūta frame; not explicit in this verse)
Scene: A narrator-devotee stands with folded hands, first bowing to a small shrine of his iṣṭa-devatā, then prostrating before a radiant guru seated on a simple āsana; behind them, auspicious deities are envisioned, with Rāma prominent.
FAQs
Begin sacred narration by honoring one’s iṣṭa-devatā and the guru, establishing humility and auspiciousness.
No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it functions as an invocation within the Dharmāraṇya context.
Praṇāma and namaskāra—devotional salutations to the guru and deities.