Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 58
एवं तदा दमनकोत्सव ईश्वरस्य आंदोलनेन नृपवेश्मनि मेऽवतारः । शम्भोर्गणत्वमभवच्च तथाग्निवेश्यशापेन गृध्र इह भद्र तवेदमुक्तम्
evaṃ tadā damanakotsava īśvarasya āṃdolanena nṛpaveśmani me'vatāraḥ | śambhorgaṇatvamabhavacca tathāgniveśyaśāpena gṛdhra iha bhadra tavedamuktam
ഇങ്ങനെ ആ സമയത്ത്—ഈശ്വരന്റെ ദമനകോത്സവവും ആന്ദോലന (ഊഞ്ഞാൽ) ചടങ്ങും നടക്കുമ്പോൾ—രാജമന്ദിരത്തിൽ എന്റെ അവതാരം സംഭവിച്ചു. ശംഭുവിന്റെ ഗണത്വവും എനിക്കു ലഭിച്ചു; കൂടാതെ, ഹേ ഭദ്രാ, അഗ്നിവേശ്യന്റെ ശാപം മൂലം ഇവിടെ ഞാൻ ഗൃധ്രനായി. ഇതാണ് നിന്നോട് പറഞ്ഞത്.
Gṛdhra (the vulture), speaking to Indradyumna (contextual)
Tirtha: Īśvara-āndolana (swing festival context)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Indradyumna (addressed as 'bhadra')
Scene: A grand Śaiva festival in a royal palace: Īśvara’s swing (āndolana) is being ceremonially moved; amid lamps, flowers, and music, the narrator’s ‘descent’ occurs and he gains gaṇa-status, yet bears Agniveśya’s curse as a vulture.
FAQs
Even exalted beings can fall through a curse, yet divine association (Śiva’s gaṇas) and truthful narration become steps toward restoration and clarity of karma.
No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; the focus is on Śiva’s festival context and the karmic backstory within the Kaumārikākhaṇḍa narrative.
A festival observance is referenced—Īśvara’s Damanaka-utsava and the āṃdolana (ceremonial swing)—but no direct injunction for dāna, snāna, or japa appears in this verse.