Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 5
सूत उवाच । अहं वः कीर्तयिष्यामि कथामेतां पुरातनीम् । सर्वपापहरां मेध्यां त्रिशंकुनृपसंभवाम्
sūta uvāca | ahaṃ vaḥ kīrtayiṣyāmi kathāmetāṃ purātanīm | sarvapāpaharāṃ medhyāṃ triśaṃkunṛpasaṃbhavām
ਸੂਤ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ: ਮੈਂ ਤੁਹਾਨੂੰ ਇਹ ਪ੍ਰਾਚੀਨ ਕਥਾ ਵਰਣਨ ਕਰਾਂਗਾ—ਪਵਿੱਤਰ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲੀ, ਸੁਣਨ ਯੋਗ, ਸਭ ਪਾਪਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਹਰਣ ਵਾਲੀ—ਜੋ ਰਾਜਾ ਤ੍ਰਿਸ਼ੰਕੁ ਨਾਲ ਸੰਬੰਧਿਤ ਹੈ।
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa/Sauti)
Listener: Ṛṣayaḥ
Scene: Sūta begins the ancient tale, raising his hand in assurance; sages lean forward in reverent attention; the moment is a formal ‘kathā-pratijñā’ (vow to narrate).
FAQs
Listening to and preserving purāṇic sacred narratives is itself purifying and sin-destroying when approached with faith.
This verse serves as the narrative preface within the Tīrthamāhātmya section; the specific tīrtha is introduced through the ensuing Triśaṅku episode.
No specific rite is prescribed here; the act emphasized is śravaṇa/kīrtana—hearing and recounting a purifying sacred account.