Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 1
रुद्र उवाच । शृणु स्कन्द महाप्राज्ञ ह्यद्भुतं यत्कृतं मया । धर्मारण्ये महादुष्टो दैत्यः कर्णाटकाभिधः
rudra uvāca | śṛṇu skanda mahāprājña hyadbhutaṃ yatkṛtaṃ mayā | dharmāraṇye mahāduṣṭo daityaḥ karṇāṭakābhidhaḥ
രുദ്രൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ മഹാപ്രാജ്ഞ സ്കന്ദാ, ഞാൻ ചെയ്ത അത്ഭുതകൃത്യം കേൾക്കുക. ധർമ്മാരണ്യത്തിൽ ‘കർണാടക’ എന്ന പേരുള്ള മഹാദുഷ്ട ദൈത്യൻ ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നു.
Rudra (Śiva)
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya
Type: kshetra
Listener: Skanda
Scene: Rudra addresses Skanda in a forest setting, beginning the tale of a demon named Karṇāṭaka who terrorized Dharmāraṇya; the mood foreshadows battle and divine protection.
FAQs
Sacred places are protected by divine power; dharma is upheld through the subduing of disruptive forces.
Dharmāraṇya, introduced as the setting of a protective divine act.
None in this verse; it begins a narrative (ākhyāna) explaining the site’s sanctity.