Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 28
पुलस्त्य उवाच । एवमुक्त्वा नृपश्रेष्ठ मुद्गलः स्वर्गनिःस्पृहः । स्थितस्तत्रैव निरतः शिवध्यानपरायणः
pulastya uvāca | evamuktvā nṛpaśreṣṭha mudgalaḥ svarganiḥspṛhaḥ | sthitastatraiva nirataḥ śivadhyānaparāyaṇaḥ
Pulastya berkata: Setelah berkata demikian, wahai raja yang utama, Mudgala—yang bebas daripada kerinduan kepada syurga—tetap tinggal di situ juga, teguh dan tekun, sepenuhnya berserah dalam meditasi kepada Śiva.
Pulastya
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (implied)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Nṛpaśreṣṭha (a king; likely the frame-listener in this adhyāya)
Scene: Pulastya narrates to a king: Mudgala, indifferent to heaven, remains seated in unwavering Śiva-meditation; the world around is still, suggesting tapas and inner absorption.
FAQs
True merit is not craving heaven but abiding in steadfast Śiva-meditation with dispassion.
The verse sits in the Arbuda Khaṇḍa context (the Arbuda/Ābu sacred landscape), emphasizing the sanctity of the region through the sage’s Śaiva practice rather than naming a single tīrtha in this line.
No external rite is prescribed here; the emphasis is on internal sādhana—Śiva-dhyāna (meditative worship).