Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 3
यत्र नैव हरिः स्वामी तीर्थे गेहेऽथ मानसे । शास्त्रे वा तदसत्सर्वं हांसं तीर्थं न वायसम्
yatra naiva hariḥ svāmī tīrthe gehe'tha mānase | śāstre vā tadasatsarvaṃ hāṃsaṃ tīrthaṃ na vāyasam
ತೀರ್ಥದಲ್ಲಾಗಲಿ, ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಆಗಲಿ, ಮನಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಆಗಲಿ, ಶಾಸ್ತ್ರದಲ್ಲಾಗಲಿ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ ಹರಿಯಿಲ್ಲದಿದ್ದರೆ—ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲವೂ ವ್ಯರ್ಥ. ತೀರ್ಥ ಹಂಸದಂತೆ ಶುದ್ಧ-ವಿವೇಕಿಯಿರಲಿ, ಕಾಗೆಯಂತೆ ಅಲ್ಲ।
Nārada
Type: kshetra
Listener: Kauravya
Scene: Didactic tableau: Nārada explains four spheres—tīrtha, home shrine, meditating heart, and palm-leaf scripture—each illuminated by a subtle Hari aura; a swan sits by clear water while a crow lingers near refuse, symbolizing discernment.
FAQs
Sacredness is defined by divine presence and inner purity; without Hari, external forms lose their living essence.
The verse teaches a universal criterion for tīrthas rather than naming one; it frames the ideal tīrtha as ‘haṃsa-like’ (pure).
An implicit prescription: establish and maintain Hari’s worship in tīrtha, home, and mind; cultivate purity and discernment (haṃsa-bhāva).