Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 1
व्यास उवाच । अतः परं प्रवक्ष्यामि शिवतीर्थमनुत्तमम् । यत्रासौ शंकरो देवः पुनर्जन्मधरोऽभवत्
vyāsa uvāca | ataḥ paraṃ pravakṣyāmi śivatīrthamanuttamam | yatrāsau śaṃkaro devaḥ punarjanmadharo'bhavat
வியாசர் கூறினார்—இனி நான் ஒப்பற்ற சிவதீர்த்தத்தை விளக்குகிறேன்; அங்கே தெய்வம் சங்கரன் தானே மறுபிறவி நிலையை ஏற்றான்.
Vyāsa
Tirtha: Unnamed ‘anuttama’ Śiva-tīrtha (to be identified in subsequent verses)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Vyāsa seated as narrator, gesturing as he begins a sacred description; behind him a luminous Śiva-tīrtha landscape hinted—riverbank/forest shrine—foreshadowing a miraculous episode involving Śaṅkara’s ‘rebirth-like’ condition.
FAQs
A tīrtha’s greatness is revealed through divine līlā—Śiva’s own extraordinary acts establish the site’s unsurpassed sanctity.
An ‘anuttama’ Śiva-tīrtha within Dharmāraṇya is introduced as the focus of the chapter’s māhātmya.
No explicit ritual is stated here; the verse serves as an introductory proclamation to the tīrtha’s account.