Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3
ऋषय ऊचुः । कस्मिन्काले विनिर्मुक्ता सा शक्तिस्तेन नो वद । किमर्थं स्वामिना तत्र किंप्रभावा वद स्वयम्
ṛṣaya ūcuḥ | kasminkāle vinirmuktā sā śaktistena no vada | kimarthaṃ svāminā tatra kiṃprabhāvā vada svayam
ऋषी म्हणाले—त्याने ती शक्ती (भाला) कोणत्या काळी सोडली? आम्हांस सांगा. तिच्या स्वाम्याने ती तेथे कोणत्या हेतूने ठेवली, आणि तिचा काय प्रभाव आहे—आपणच सांगा.
Ṛṣis (Sages)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Sūta (implied respondent in the next verse)
Scene: A circle of ṛṣis seated in a forest āśrama, palms joined, questioning the storyteller about a radiant spear/śakti associated with a holy place; the atmosphere is anticipatory, with a subtle divine glow hinting at the weapon’s presence.
FAQs
Sacred geography is validated through origin-questions: time, purpose, and power establish why a site/object is worthy of worship.
The inquiry concerns the Śakti and its associated kuṇḍa at the tīrtha described in Adhyāya 70.
No prescription here; it initiates the explanatory narrative by asking about the Śakti’s release, purpose, and potency.