Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 15
आमन्त्र्य गौतमीं देवीं स्थितानि पुरतस्ततः । सर्वेषां शृण्वतां विप्रा गौतमी खिन्नमानसा । तप्ता दुर्जनसंसर्गान्नारदं दुःखिताऽब्रवीत्
āmantrya gautamīṃ devīṃ sthitāni puratastataḥ | sarveṣāṃ śṛṇvatāṃ viprā gautamī khinnamānasā | taptā durjanasaṃsargānnāradaṃ duḥkhitā'bravīt
गौतमीदेवीं समामन्त्र्य ते तस्याः पुरतः स्थिताः। सर्वेषां विप्राणां शृण्वतां गौतमी खिन्नमानसा, दुर्जनसंसर्गतप्ता, नारदं दुःखिता उवाच॥
Gautamī (deified river-goddess) speaking to Devarṣi Nārada
Tirtha: Gautamī (Godāvarī)
Type: river
Scene: Gautamī-devī, personified as a river-goddess, stands before assembled brāhmaṇas; Nārada listens as she speaks with a weary, sorrowful expression, suggesting the burden of cleansing the world.
FAQs
Even sacred spaces suffer when polluted by adharmic company; avoiding durjana-saṅga is essential for personal and communal holiness.
Gautamī—the Godāvarī revered as a goddess and tīrtha—is the central sacred presence in this passage.
No explicit rite is given; the implied discipline is ethical—guarding tīrthas through right conduct and avoiding harmful associations.