Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 1
अर्जुन उवाच । गुप्तक्षेत्रमिदं कस्मात्कस्माद्गुप्तं च नारद । यस्य प्रभावः सुमहान्नैव कस्यापि संस्तुतः
arjuna uvāca | guptakṣetramidaṃ kasmātkasmādguptaṃ ca nārada | yasya prabhāvaḥ sumahānnaiva kasyāpi saṃstutaḥ
अर्जुन उवाच— नारद, इदं गुप्तक्षेत्रं कस्मात्? कस्माच्च गुप्तं स्थितम्? यस्य प्रभावः सुमहान्, स तु कस्यापि न संस्तुतः।
Arjuna
Tirtha: Guptakṣetra (name as given)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Nārada
Scene: Arjuna, with folded hands, questions sage Nārada about a mysterious 'hidden kṣetra'; the setting is a forest hermitage with a subtle aura suggesting an unseen sacred landscape.
FAQs
True sanctity may remain veiled; inquiry to a realized guide is the doorway to understanding a tīrtha’s hidden glory.
A ‘Guptakṣetra’ (hidden sacred region) associated with the Mahīnagaraka/Nīlakaṇṭha narrative stream.
None; this verse frames a question that introduces the forthcoming origin story.