Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 3
युधिष्ठिर उवाच । आश्चर्यमेतल्लोकेषु यत्त्वया कथितं मुने । न दृष्टं न श्रुतं तात शूलस्थेन तपः कृतम्
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | āścaryametallokeṣu yattvayā kathitaṃ mune | na dṛṣṭaṃ na śrutaṃ tāta śūlasthena tapaḥ kṛtam
युधिष्ठिर म्हणाला—हे मुने! तुम्ही जे कथन केले ते लोकांतही मोठे आश्चर्य आहे. तात, शूळावर स्थित होऊन तप केले—असे मी ना पाहिले, ना ऐकले।
Yudhiṣṭhira
Tirtha: Māṇḍavya-tīrtha (implied)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Mārkaṇḍeya (and assembled sages)
Scene: A royal assembly: Yudhiṣṭhira, astonished, addresses a sage; in the mind’s eye appears the severe image of an ascetic performing tapas upon a stake (śūla), evoking awe and reverence.
FAQs
True tapas can be extraordinary and rare; the listener is urged toward reverent inquiry rather than disbelief when encountering accounts of intense asceticism.
The verse itself focuses on the marvel of śūlastha tapas; the tīrtha context is the Revā Khaṇḍa site being described in the surrounding narration.
None directly; it is a question expressing astonishment and prompting further explanation.