Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 13
नंदिवर्द्धन उवाच । पापीयान्स विभो देशः फलमूलैर्विवर्जितः । पालाशैः खादिरैराढ्यो धवैः शाल्मलिभिस्तथा
naṃdivarddhana uvāca | pāpīyānsa vibho deśaḥ phalamūlairvivarjitaḥ | pālāśaiḥ khādirairāḍhyo dhavaiḥ śālmalibhistathā
நந்திவர்த்தனன் கூறினான்—ஓ பிரபுவே! அந்த நாடு மிகக் கடுமையானது; பழமும் கிழங்கும் அற்றது. ஆயினும் அங்கே பலாசம், கதீரம் மரங்கள் நிறைந்து, தவம் மற்றும் சால்மலியும் அடர்ந்து உள்ளன.
Nandivarddhana
Tirtha: Arbuda (prospective kṣetra on the mountain)
Type: peak
Listener: Vasiṣṭha (and/or the addressed ‘vibho’/lordly figure in context)
Scene: Nandivardhana points out a bleak, fruitless tract: thorny dryness and scrub, yet dense stands of palāśa (flame-of-the-forest), khadira, dhava, and śālmali trees under a harsh sky.
FAQs
Purāṇic sacred geography treats terrain itself as meaningful—describing a place truthfully is part of responsibly engaging with it.
The verse contributes to the Arbuda-khaṇḍa’s portrayal of the Arbuda region; no named tīrtha appears in this line.
None.