Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 107
षडक्षरं मंत्रवरं तवेश जपंति ये मुनयो वीतरागाः । तेषां प्रसन्नोऽसि जपामहेतं त्वोंकारपूर्वं च नमः शिवाय
ṣaḍakṣaraṃ maṃtravaraṃ taveśa japaṃti ye munayo vītarāgāḥ | teṣāṃ prasanno'si japāmahetaṃ tvoṃkārapūrvaṃ ca namaḥ śivāya
हे ईश्वरा! विरक्त मुनी तुझा श्रेष्ठ षडाक्षरी मंत्र जपतात; त्यांच्यावर तू प्रसन्न होतोस. आम्हीही तोच मंत्र जपतो—ॐकारपूर्वक ‘नमः शिवाय’।
A dvija devotee (as implied by the immediate narrative context)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Bhārata (epic-style addressee)
Scene: A serene ascetic or brāhmaṇa sits before a liṅga, hands in japa-mudrā, a subtle Oṃ radiance above, while vītarāga sages appear as a quiet chorus of seers; the mantra ‘Namaḥ Śivāya’ is visualized as a garland of syllables encircling the liṅga.
FAQs
Mantra-japa, especially the ṣaḍakṣarī ‘Namaḥ Śivāya’ with Oṃ, purifies desire and draws Śiva’s grace.
No particular place is named; the verse glorifies the mantra itself as a portable tirtha of liberation.
Japa of the six-syllable mantra ‘Oṃ Namaḥ Śivāya,’ following the model of vītarāga munis.