Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 111
राज्यं चिरायुरिति मे घृतकम्बलस्य जातिस्मरत्वमधुनापि तथानु भावान् । शापाद्बकत्वमभवन्मुनिगालवस्य तद्भद्र सर्वमुदितं भवताद्य पृष्टम्
rājyaṃ cirāyuriti me ghṛtakambalasya jātismaratvamadhunāpi tathānu bhāvān | śāpādbakatvamabhavanmunigālavasya tadbhadra sarvamuditaṃ bhavatādya pṛṣṭam
“Kerajaan” dan “umur panjang”—demikianlah pengalaman hamba ketika menjadi Ghṛtakambala; hingga kini pun hamba masih mengingati kelahiran-kelahiran itu beserta akibatnya. Oleh sumpahan resi Gālava, hamba menjadi seekor bangau. Wahai tuan yang mulia, kini telah hamba nyatakan segala yang tuan tanyakan.”
Nāḍījaṃgha-baka (the crane)
Scene: A reflective narrator gestures as if recounting past lives; faint layered imagery shows a kingly figure (Ghṛtakambala), then a crane, connected by a thread of karma; the listener appears attentive.
FAQs
The Purāṇas frame destiny as ethically conditioned: past actions and holy or unholy conduct bear fruit across births, sometimes remembered by the jātismara.
This verse is more biographical than topographical; the broader passage remains situated in the Himācala sacred setting.
No direct ritual instruction appears; the verse concludes a testimony explaining the cause of the crane-form.