Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 15
त्वं समुद्धरसि विप्रान्किमतः प्रोच्यते तव । अन्येऽपि जीव बहुधात्वामुपाश्रित्य भूधर
tvaṃ samuddharasi viprānkimataḥ procyate tava | anye'pi jīva bahudhātvāmupāśritya bhūdhara
ನೀನು ವಿಪ್ರರನ್ನು ಉದ್ಧರಿಸಿ ಪೋಷಿಸುತ್ತೀಯೆ—ನಿನ್ನ ಸ್ತುತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಇದಕ್ಕಿಂತ ಹೆಚ್ಚಾಗಿ ಏನು ಹೇಳಬೇಕು? ಹೇ ಭೂಧರ, ಇತರ ಅನೇಕ ಜೀವಿಗಳೂ ನಾನಾವಿಧವಾಗಿ ನಿನ್ನನ್ನು ಆಶ್ರಯಿಸಿ ಬದುಕುತ್ತವೆ.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa), narrating
Tirtha: Bhūdhara-āśraya (mountain refuge tīrtha)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Bhūdhara/Achala (mountain)
Scene: The mountain is shown as a vast protector: brāhmaṇas study and perform rites at the foothills while varied creatures—birds, deer, villagers—take shelter across its slopes.
FAQs
Supporting the wise and giving refuge to life is a supreme form of dharma worthy of praise.
A mountain refuge is praised without naming a particular tīrtha.
No explicit ritual; the verse emphasizes protective support and refuge as dharmic merit.