Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 45
त्विषिमान्धर्मपुत्रस्तु सोमो देवो वरस्तु सः । शीतरश्मिः समुत्पन्नः कृत्तिकासु निशाचरः
tviṣimāndharmaputrastu somo devo varastu saḥ | śītaraśmiḥ samutpannaḥ kṛttikāsu niśācaraḥ
सोम तेजस्वी होता—तो धर्माचा पुत्र आणि श्रेष्ठ देव मानला गेला. शीतल किरणांचा तो कृत्तिकांमध्ये उत्पन्न झाला आणि रात्रौ विचरण करणारा झाला.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating (contextual deduction within Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa māhātmya narration)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Mahādevī (contextual continuation)
Scene: Soma appears radiant and cool-rayed, associated with Dharma; he rises among the Kṛttikās (Pleiades), moving through the night sky—an astral-theophany.
FAQs
The Moon’s cool radiance is presented as a dharmic gift—orderly, nourishing, and linked to cosmic timing, reinforcing the sacredness of the world’s rhythms.
Prabhāsa-kṣetra, indirectly—through the māhātmya’s account of Soma’s origin and attributes connected to the region’s sacred narrative.
No ritual instruction appears in this verse.