Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 58
एवं तदा दमनकोत्सव ईश्वरस्य आंदोलनेन नृपवेश्मनि मेऽवतारः । शम्भोर्गणत्वमभवच्च तथाग्निवेश्यशापेन गृध्र इह भद्र तवेदमुक्तम्
evaṃ tadā damanakotsava īśvarasya āṃdolanena nṛpaveśmani me'vatāraḥ | śambhorgaṇatvamabhavacca tathāgniveśyaśāpena gṛdhra iha bhadra tavedamuktam
ಹೀಗೆ ಆ ಸಮಯದಲ್ಲಿ—ಈಶ್ವರನ ದಮನಕೋತ್ಸವ ಹಾಗೂ ಆಂದೋಲನ (ಊಯಲೆ) ವಿಧಿಯ ಸಂದರ್ಭದಲ್ಲಿ—ರಾಜಮನೆತನದಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನ ಅವತಾರ ಸಂಭವಿಸಿತು. ಶಂಭುವಿನ ಗಣತ್ವವೂ ನನಗೆ ದೊರಕಿತು; ಮತ್ತು ಹೇ ಭದ್ರ, ಅಗ್ನಿವೇಶ್ಯನ ಶಾಪದಿಂದ ಇಲ್ಲಿ ನಾನು ಗೃಧ್ರನಾದೆನು. ಇದನ್ನೇ ನಿನಗೆ ತಿಳಿಸಿದೆನು.
Gṛdhra (the vulture), speaking to Indradyumna (contextual)
Tirtha: Īśvara-āndolana (swing festival context)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Indradyumna (addressed as 'bhadra')
Scene: A grand Śaiva festival in a royal palace: Īśvara’s swing (āndolana) is being ceremonially moved; amid lamps, flowers, and music, the narrator’s ‘descent’ occurs and he gains gaṇa-status, yet bears Agniveśya’s curse as a vulture.
FAQs
Even exalted beings can fall through a curse, yet divine association (Śiva’s gaṇas) and truthful narration become steps toward restoration and clarity of karma.
No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; the focus is on Śiva’s festival context and the karmic backstory within the Kaumārikākhaṇḍa narrative.
A festival observance is referenced—Īśvara’s Damanaka-utsava and the āṃdolana (ceremonial swing)—but no direct injunction for dāna, snāna, or japa appears in this verse.