Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 43
महाकेशः सहस्रेण नंदिर्द्वादशभिस्तथा । नगः कालः करालश्च महाकालः शतेन च
mahākeśaḥ sahasreṇa naṃdirdvādaśabhistathā | nagaḥ kālaḥ karālaśca mahākālaḥ śatena ca
മഹാകേശൻ ആയിരം ഗണങ്ങളോടുകൂടെ വന്നു; നന്ദിയും പന്ത്രണ്ട് ഗണങ്ങളോടുകൂടെ വന്നു. നാഗൻ, കാലൻ, കരാളൻ എന്നിവരും എത്തി; മഹാകാലൻ നൂറ് ഗണങ്ങളോടുകൂടെ വന്നു.
Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), narrating to the sages
Scene: A vast assembly of Śiva’s gaṇas arriving in ordered companies: Mahākeśa with a thousand, Nandin with twelve groups, and fierce forms like Kāla, Karāla, and Mahākāla with a hundred—suggesting a martial mustering around a central Śaiva axis.
FAQs
Śiva’s entourage includes even the powers of Time and awe—reminding devotees that all cosmic forces stand within Śiva’s dominion.
Though “Mahākāla” is famously associated with Ujjain, this verse itself does not explicitly praise a tīrtha; it lists gaṇas.
None.