Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 50
विजयश्चापि माहात्म्यमिदं जानन्महामतिः । आनर्च वटवृक्षस्थां भक्तितो वटयक्षिणीम्
vijayaścāpi māhātmyamidaṃ jānanmahāmatiḥ | ānarca vaṭavṛkṣasthāṃ bhaktito vaṭayakṣiṇīm
വിജയനും—മഹാബുദ്ധിമാനായി ഈ മഹാത്മ്യം അറിഞ്ഞ്—വടവൃക്ഷത്തിൽ അധിവസിക്കുന്ന വടയക്ഷിണിയെ ഭക്തിയോടെ ആരാധിച്ചു।
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa context)
Tirtha: Vaṭavṛkṣa-sthā Vaṭayakṣiṇī
Type: kshetra
Scene: Vijaya, portrayed as a thoughtful pilgrim, stands before the banyan and worships the yakṣiṇī with composed devotion, suggesting he has learned the shrine’s greatness.
FAQs
Knowing a place’s or tradition’s māhātmya should culminate in humble, devoted worship—bhakti expressed through honoring the sacred presence at the site.
The verse highlights a sacred banyan-tree locus (vaṭavṛkṣa) with an indwelling guardian Yakṣiṇī; the precise named tīrtha is not stated in this single verse.
It prescribes/depicts arcana (worship/honoring) performed with devotion to the Vaṭayakṣiṇī residing in the banyan tree.