Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 62
अविद्यया वृतं तेन कृतं त्वष्ट्रा हि मण्डपम् । किं तु वक्ष्यामहे विष्णो मण्डपः केवलेन हि
avidyayā vṛtaṃ tena kṛtaṃ tvaṣṭrā hi maṇḍapam | kiṃ tu vakṣyāmahe viṣṇo maṇḍapaḥ kevalena hi
Dilindungi oleh kejahilan, maṇḍapa itu memang dibina oleh Tvaṣṭṛ. Namun apakah yang dapat kita katakan dengan sebenar-benarnya, wahai Viṣṇu? Sebuah maṇḍapa, pada akhirnya, hanyalah sebuah balai semata-mata.
Śaṅkara (Śiva) to Viṣṇu (direct vocative viṣṇo)
Tirtha: Kedāra-kṣetra (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣi assembly (frame; not explicit)
Scene: Śaṅkara, serene and slightly admonitory, gestures toward an ornate maṇḍapa as if relativizing its importance; Viṣṇu listens thoughtfully; the pavilion appears beautiful yet subtly ‘empty’ in mood.
FAQs
Worldly splendor, when veiled by ignorance, is ultimately ‘mere form’; wisdom looks past display to truth.
This teaching occurs within the Kedārakhaṇḍa’s Kedāra-kṣetra setting, supporting the Shaiva mahātmya frame.
None; the emphasis is philosophical—avidyā (ignorance) and the insignificance of mere external grandeur.