Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 55
क्षुत्पीडया समायाता नैव निद्रा कथंचन । स्वल्पापि मंदिरे चात्र स्थितयोर्हरसन्निधौ
kṣutpīḍayā samāyātā naiva nidrā kathaṃcana | svalpāpi maṃdire cātra sthitayorharasannidhau
ക്ഷുധാപീഡയാൽ വലയുന്ന ഞങ്ങൾ ഇരുവര്ക്കും എങ്ങനെയും ഉറക്കം വന്നില്ല; ഇവിടെ ഈ ക്ഷേത്രത്തിൽ ഹരൻ (ശിവൻ) സന്നിധിയിൽ നിന്നിട്ടും, അല്പം പോലും ഇല്ല।
Rājā (continuing narration)
Tirtha: Hara-sannidhi (temple residence)
Type: temple
Listener: Dvijottamāḥ (best of Brahmins)
Scene: Inside a dim temple hall, two pilgrims sit near the sanctum through the night—thin, hungry, eyes open—lamp-light falling on the Śiva emblem, their bodies weary but minds fixed.
FAQs
Austerity endured in the immediate presence of Śiva—here, wakefulness caused by hunger—becomes part of a spiritually charged vigil.
The temple locale where Hara is present (Hara-sannidhi) within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narrative; the verse emphasizes sanctity through proximity to the deity.
Implicitly, the practice of remaining awake (jāgaraṇa) in the temple precincts, even under bodily hardship.