Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3
एके विप्राः स्थितास्तेषामेकांतरितभोजनाः । षष्ठकालाशिनश्चान्ये चांद्रायणपरायणाः
eke viprāḥ sthitāsteṣāmekāṃtaritabhojanāḥ | ṣaṣṭhakālāśinaścānye cāṃdrāyaṇaparāyaṇāḥ
त्यांच्यात काही विप्र एक दिवस आड भोजन करीत; काहीजण षष्ठकाळीच आहार घेत; आणि काहीजण चांद्रायण व्रतात पूर्णतः तत्पर होते।
Viśvāmitra
Tirtha: Himavān-āśrama context (vrata-bhūmi)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Implied internal audience
Scene: A sequence-like depiction of different ascetics: one group eating on alternate days, another taking sparse meals at a fixed time, another performing cāndrāyaṇa with lunar symbols overhead; all within a calm hermitage.
FAQs
Austerity is refined through restraint in food; measured living supports inner clarity and dharmic strength.
The tīrtha-āśrama setting in the Himālaya region, where vows like Cāndrāyaṇa are practiced to intensify sanctity.
Cāndrāyaṇa vrata and strict dietary regimens (alternate-day eating, time-bound eating) are referenced as forms of tapas.