Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 9
मनुं प्रणम्य शिरसा पृच्छाम्येतद्युधिष्ठिर । केयं पद्मपलाशाक्षी श्यामा चंद्रनिभानना
manuṃ praṇamya śirasā pṛcchāmyetadyudhiṣṭhira | keyaṃ padmapalāśākṣī śyāmā caṃdranibhānanā
हे युधिष्ठिर! मी शिर झुकवून मनुला प्रणाम करून विचारतो—ही पद्मपलाश-नेत्री, श्यामवर्णा, चंद्रासारख्या मुखाची स्त्री कोण आहे?
Yudhiṣṭhira (as named within the verse-context address)
Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā)
Type: river
Listener: Manu (in the recalled episode); Yudhiṣṭhira (in present narration)
Scene: Mārkaṇḍeya bows with head lowered before Manu, then raises his gaze to ask about the dark, lotus-eyed, moon-faced lady.
FAQs
Reverence (praṇāma) and sincere inquiry are presented as the proper doorway to receiving purāṇic wisdom about sacred beings and places.
The Revā/Narmadā sacred landscape is the broader setting; this verse introduces the identity of a divine presence tied to that māhātmya.
None explicitly; the implied practice is respectful salutation to elders/sages before questioning.