Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 26
तथा प्रेतैश्च भूतैश्च कपटैः परिवारिता । वीरभद्रादयश्चैव गणाः परमदारुणाः । ये दक्षयज्ञनाशार्थे शिवेनाज्ञापितास्तदा
tathā pretaiśca bhūtaiśca kapaṭaiḥ parivāritā | vīrabhadrādayaścaiva gaṇāḥ paramadāruṇāḥ | ye dakṣayajñanāśārthe śivenājñāpitāstadā
Dia juga dikelilingi oleh para Preta dan Bhūta serta makhluk-makhluk licik yang menggerunkan. Vīrabhadra dan para Gaṇa yang lain—amat dahsyat dan garang—ialah mereka yang pada waktu itu diperintah oleh Śiva untuk memusnahkan yajña (korban suci) Dakṣa.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa), per Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative convention
Tirtha: Kedāra (Kedāranātha)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A terrifying procession of Śiva’s gaṇas—Vīrabhadra at the fore—surrounded by Pretas and Bhūtas, moving with the mandate to shatter Dakṣa’s sacrifice; smoke, ash, and broken yajña implements implied.
FAQs
Dharma cannot be upheld by pride-filled ritual alone; when sacrifice is severed from reverence and humility, it collapses under divine justice.
Kedāra-kṣetra is the narrative setting; the verse connects Kedāra’s Śaiva mahatmya to the wider Śiva mythos (Dakṣa-yajña).
No; rather, it warns implicitly that yajña must be aligned with devotion and proper honor to Śiva.