Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2
यत्रैकस्मिन्नपि स्नाने कृते पार्थिवसत्तम । सर्वेषां लभ्यते पुण्यं तीर्थानां स्नानसंभवम् । माघमासे त्रयोदश्यां शुक्लपक्ष उपस्थिते
yatraikasminnapi snāne kṛte pārthivasattama | sarveṣāṃ labhyate puṇyaṃ tīrthānāṃ snānasaṃbhavam | māghamāse trayodaśyāṃ śuklapakṣa upasthite
हे राजश्रेष्ठा! त्या स्थानी एकदाच स्नान केले तरी सर्वांना अनेक तीर्थस्नानातून जे पुण्य मिळते ते प्राप्त होते—विशेषतः माघमासातील शुक्लपक्षाची त्रयोदशी आली असता।
Viśvāmitra (continuing address to the king, implied by vocative)
Type: ghat
Listener: pārthiva-sattama (a king)
Scene: Pilgrims at a sacred ford at dawn in Māgha, bathing with folded hands; priests on the bank recite mantras; the sky suggests bright fortnight auspiciousness.
FAQs
A single, faith-filled bath at a highly praised tīrtha can equal the merit of many pilgrimages, especially on auspicious calendrical days.
Bālamaṇḍana Tīrtha (the ‘place where a single bath’ yields immense merit) in Nāgarakhaṇḍa.
Snāna (ritual bath), particularly in Māgha month on Śukla Trayodaśī.