Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 58
ईश्वर उवाच । अन्यद्देवशिलायास्तु माहात्म्यं शृणु भूपते । कथयामि महाबाहो सेतिहासं पुरातनम्
īśvara uvāca | anyaddevaśilāyāstu māhātmyaṃ śṛṇu bhūpate | kathayāmi mahābāho setihāsaṃ purātanam
ഈശ്വരൻ അരുളിച്ചെയ്തു—ഹേ ഭൂപതേ, ദേവശിലയുടെ മറ്റൊരു മഹാത്മ്യം കേൾക്കുക. ഹേ മഹാബാഹോ, പുരാതനമായ പുണ്യചരിത്രം ഞാൻ നിനക്കു പറയുന്നു.
Īśvara (Śiva)
Tirtha: Devaśilā
Type: kshetra
Listener: a king (bhūpati, mahābāhu)
Scene: Śiva as narrator addresses a king, gesturing toward a sacred rock-hill or stone outcrop (Devaśilā) as he begins an ancient legend; attendants and sages sit in a forested hermitage near the river route.
FAQs
Holy places possess distinctive māhātmya, and hearing their sacred histories is itself a dharmic act that deepens devotion.
Devaśilā is explicitly introduced for praise and narration of its māhātmya.
Śravaṇa (devotional listening) to the māhātmya/itihāsa of the sacred site is prescribed implicitly by ‘śṛṇu’ (hear).