Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 11
सूत उवाच । आसीत्पुरा ऋचीकाख्यो भृगुपुत्रो महामुनिः । व्रताध्ययनसंपन्नः सुतपस्वी महायशाः
sūta uvāca | āsītpurā ṛcīkākhyo bhṛguputro mahāmuniḥ | vratādhyayanasaṃpannaḥ sutapasvī mahāyaśāḥ
സൂതൻ പറഞ്ഞു—പുരാതനകാലത്ത് ഭൃഗുവിന്റെ പുത്രനായ ഋചീകൻ എന്ന മഹാമുനി ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നു; വ്രതവും അധ്യയനവും സമ്പന്നൻ, മഹാതപസ്വി, മഹായശസ്സുള്ളവൻ.
Sūta
Listener: Ṛṣayaḥ
Scene: Sūta narrates the emergence of Ṛcīka: a radiant ascetic with matted hair, holding a kamaṇḍalu and manuscript, surrounded by signs of austerity—fire altar, deer-skin, and quiet forest.
FAQs
Tīrtha-māhātmya is grounded in the lives of disciplined sages—vows, study, and austerity make one fit to receive and reveal sacred merit.
The site is introduced through the sage’s story; the next verses connect Ṛcīka to Bhojakaṭa and the Kauśikī river.
Implied ideals: vrata (vows) and adhyayana (scriptural study), though no specific rite is detailed here.