Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 29
श्रीभगवानुवाच । भूतप्रेतपिशाचैश्च कूष्मांडै राक्षसैरपि । पुरा संप्रार्थितः शंभुर्दिने तत्र समागते । अद्यैकं दिवसं देव कन्यासंस्थे दिवाकरे
śrībhagavānuvāca | bhūtapretapiśācaiśca kūṣmāṃḍai rākṣasairapi | purā saṃprārthitaḥ śaṃbhurdine tatra samāgate | adyaikaṃ divasaṃ deva kanyāsaṃsthe divākare
世尊は言われた。「昔、その日が到来したとき、ブータ（bhūta）、プレータ（preta）、ピシャーチャ（piśāca）、クーシュマーンダ（kūṣmāṇḍa）、ラークシャサ（rākṣasa）らがシャンブ（Śambhu）に切に願った。『おおデーヴァよ、今日—太陽がカンヤー（Kanyā）に在るとき—ただ一日のみを我らにお授けください…』」
Śrī Bhagavān
Scene: A twilight-like sacred day arrives; Śambhu is approached by a mixed host of bhūtas, pretas, piśācas, kūṣmāṇḍas, and rākṣasas, hands folded, pleading for a single day of grace as the Sun enters Kanyā.
FAQs
Even fearsome beings are included within the moral universe of dharma—divine compassion creates regulated means for their relief.
The narrative supports the wider Gayā-śrāddha teaching, though this verse focuses on the origin-story involving Śiva and a calendrical day.
It introduces the basis for a special single day tied to the Sun in Kanyā (Virgo), which later becomes connected to rites that satisfy such beings.
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