Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 9
स्थंडिलस्था च हेमंते निराहारा तताप सा । एतस्मिन्नंतरे दैत्यो ह्यंधकस्य सुतो बली
sthaṃḍilasthā ca hemaṃte nirāhārā tatāpa sā | etasminnaṃtare daityo hyaṃdhakasya suto balī
ഹേമന്തകാലത്ത് അവൾ വെറും നിലത്തിരിഞ്ഞ്, നിരാഹാരയായി തപസ്സു ചെയ്തു. അതിനിടയിൽ അന്ധകന്റെ പുത്രനായ ബലവാനായ ദൈത്യൻ അവിടെ എത്തി.
Narrator (Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa)
Scene: Winter austerity: Girisutā seated or lying on bare earth, minimal garments, matted hair, breath visible in cold air; distant shadow of a daitya approaching from the margins.
FAQs
Austerity and purity invite tests; spiritual practice often coincides with the arising of obstacles.
No named tīrtha; the verse transitions from tapas-description to a daitya episode.
Fasting (nirāhāra) and ground-austerity (sthaṃḍila) during winter are described.