Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 2
कथमेषा नदी पुण्या सर्वनदीषु चोत्तमा । नर्मदा नाम विख्याता भूयो मे कथयानघ
kathameṣā nadī puṇyā sarvanadīṣu cottamā | narmadā nāma vikhyātā bhūyo me kathayānagha
‘നർമദാ’ എന്ന നാമത്തിൽ പ്രസിദ്ധയായ ഈ നദി എങ്ങനെ ഇത്ര പുണ്യവതിയും സർവ്വനദികളിലും ശ്രേഷ്ഠയുമാണ്? ഹേ അനഘാ, വീണ്ടും എനിക്ക് വിശദമായി പറയുക.
A king (listener; addressed as nṛpa in the next verse) speaking to Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya
Tirtha: Narmadā (Revā)
Type: river
Listener: Mārkaṇḍeya (recipient of the question)
Scene: The listener asks specifically about Narmadā’s exceptional holiness; visual focus shifts toward an imagined river with sacred markers—ghāṭas, śiva-liṅgas, sages on banks.
FAQs
A sincere seeker should repeatedly inquire into the greatness (māhātmya) of a tīrtha to understand its dharmic power and purpose.
The river Narmadā (Revā), introduced as renowned and supreme among rivers.
No direct rite is prescribed here; the verse sets up the request to explain Narmadā’s sanctity and merits.