Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 86
परं विप्रस्य या दीक्षा व्रतवंधसमुद्भवा । गायत्री परमा जाप्ये गुरुर्व्रतपरो हि सः । वैष्णवीं चाथ शैवीं च योऽन्यां दीक्षां समाचरेत्
paraṃ viprasya yā dīkṣā vratavaṃdhasamudbhavā | gāyatrī paramā jāpye gururvrataparo hi saḥ | vaiṣṇavīṃ cātha śaivīṃ ca yo'nyāṃ dīkṣāṃ samācaret
Bagi seorang brāhmaṇa, dīkṣā yang tertinggi ialah yang lahir daripada ikatan nazar disiplin suci (vrata). Dalam japa, mantra yang paling utama ialah Gāyatrī; dan guru yang sejati baginya ialah yang teguh berpegang pada vrata. Namun jika seseorang, setelah menerima dīkṣā Vaiṣṇava atau Śaiva, masih melakukan dīkṣā yang lain lagi kerana hati yang berubah-ubah—
Narrative voice (speaker not explicitly marked in this verse; immediate dialogue attribution appears from 89 onward)
Scene: A didactic scene: Durvāsā instructs a brāhmaṇa aspirant; Gāyatrī is symbolized by a radiant sun-disc or Vedic fire; two paths (Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava) appear as distinct emblems, warning against wavering between them.
FAQs
Vow-bound discipline and faithful practice—especially Gāyatrī-japa—are upheld as the highest brāhmaṇical path, not restless switching of consecrations.
This verse is doctrinal within the Tīrthamāhātmya flow; no specific tīrtha-name is stated in the śloka itself.
Gāyatrī-japa is identified as supreme, and steadfast observance of vrata is emphasized as the core discipline connected to dīkṣā.