Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 40
अहं कूर्मस्तदा जातो दशयोजनविस्तृतः । समुद्रसलिले नीतस्त्वयाहं यज्ञसाधने
ahaṃ kūrmastadā jāto daśayojanavistṛtaḥ | samudrasalile nītastvayāhaṃ yajñasādhane
அப்போது நான் ஆமையாகப் பிறந்தேன், பத்து யோஜனை அகலமுடையவன்; யாகம் நிறைவேறுவதற்காக நீ என்னை கடல்நீரில் கொண்டு சென்றாய்।
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating (contextual attribution within Māheśvara-khaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Samudra (mythic sacred ocean)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Narrative audience within Kaumārikākhaṇḍa
Scene: A gigantic tortoise—ten yojanas wide—moves into the ocean; above, the sacrificial enterprise is implied, with divine beings using the tortoise as support for a great rite.
FAQs
Dharma is upheld through yajña, and beings may assume extraordinary forms to support sacred rites.
No named tīrtha appears; the setting is the ocean connected to a sacrificial undertaking.
The verse references yajña-sādhana (accomplishing a sacrifice), implying ritual performance rather than prescribing a specific vow.