Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2
श्रीमहादेव उवाच । द्विजातीनां सहोंकारसहितो द्वादशाक्षरः । स्त्रीशूद्राणां नमस्कारपूर्वकः समुदाहृतः
śrīmahādeva uvāca | dvijātīnāṃ sahoṃkārasahito dvādaśākṣaraḥ | strīśūdrāṇāṃ namaskārapūrvakaḥ samudāhṛtaḥ
Śrī Mahādeva bersabda: “Bagi golongan dwijāti (dua kali lahir), mantra dua belas suku kata diajarkan bersama suku kata Oṃ; bagi wanita dan Śūdra, ia dinyatakan didahului oleh salam hormat, ‘namo’.”
Śiva (Mahādeva)
Scene: Mahādeva instructs on mantra order: a calm didactic scene with Śiva as teacher, sacred syllables (Oṃ / namo) visually suggested as akṣaras in the air.
FAQs
Mantra practice is presented as regulated by traditional rules of utterance and eligibility, emphasizing proper entry-form (Oṃ or namo).
No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; the focus is mantra-vidhi within the broader māhātmya narrative.
The twelve-syllable mantra is to be recited with Oṃ for dvijas, and with “namo” as the prefatory salutation for women and Śūdras.