Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 5
मार्कण्डेय उवाच । संक्षेपात्कथयिष्यामि साध्यस्य चरितं महत् । न हि विस्तरतो वक्तुं शक्ताः सर्वे महर्षयः
mārkaṇḍeya uvāca | saṃkṣepātkathayiṣyāmi sādhyasya caritaṃ mahat | na hi vistarato vaktuṃ śaktāḥ sarve maharṣayaḥ
มารกัณฑेयกล่าวว่า “เราจักเล่าโดยย่อถึงจริยาประวัติอันยิ่งใหญ่ของสาธยะ เพราะแม้มหาฤษีทั้งปวงก็มิอาจกล่าวได้โดยพิสดารครบถ้วน”
Mārkaṇḍeya
Listener: A king (nṛpa; addressed as ‘rājan’, ‘bharatarṣabha’ in nearby verses)
Scene: A forest hermitage scene: sage Mārkaṇḍeya seated on kuśa grass, addressing a king; palm-leaf manuscripts nearby; disciples and sacrificial fire in the background, conveying the solemn start of a great account.
FAQs
Sacred history is vast; humility and faithful reception of even a concise teaching is upheld as meaningful.
No site is named in this verse; it introduces a narrative explaining the background connected to Śrīpati and Devatīrtha.
None; it frames the forthcoming narration.