Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 18
अश्वत्थ विष्णुरूपोऽसि त्वं देवेषु प्रतिष्ठितः । तस्माद्रक्षस्व मे पुत्रं सर्वतस्त्वं वनस्पते
aśvattha viṣṇurūpo'si tvaṃ deveṣu pratiṣṭhitaḥ | tasmādrakṣasva me putraṃ sarvatastvaṃ vanaspate
Wahai Aśvattha, engkau berwujud Viṣṇu dan ditegakkan di antara para dewa. Maka, wahai tuan segala pepohon, lindungilah anak lelakiku dari segala arah.
The mother (tapasvinī)
Tirtha: Aśvattha-Viṣṇu-sthāna (unnamed)
Type: kshetra
Scene: At the base of the vast aśvattha, the woman raises folded hands, addressing the tree as Viṣṇu himself, invoking protection on all sides for her son.
FAQs
The divine can be approached through sacred embodiments in nature; reverence to the Aśvattha is treated as reverence to Viṣṇu and yields protection.
A sacred Aśvattha-spot within the tīrtha narrative is glorified; the tree itself functions as the sanctifying marker of place.
A direct protective prayer (śaraṇāgati) to the Aśvattha is voiced; no separate dāna/snānādi is specified in this verse.