Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 61
मेरुः प्रासादराजा च देवानामालयो हि सः । आदौ पञ्चाण्डको ज्ञेयः केसरीनामतः स्थितः
meruḥ prāsādarājā ca devānāmālayo hi saḥ | ādau pañcāṇḍako jñeyaḥ kesarīnāmataḥ sthitaḥ
‘เมรุ’ เป็นราชาแห่งปราสาททั้งปวง; แท้จริงเป็นที่สถิตของเหล่าเทวะ. ในเบื้องต้นพึงรู้ศาลเจ้าชื่อ ‘ปัญจาณฑกะ’ ซึ่งสถาปนาไว้ในนาม ‘เกสรี’
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)
Tirtha: Meru-prāsāda; Pañcāṇḍaka (Kesarī) shrine within Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: temple
Scene: A towering ‘Meru’ prāsāda at the center like a golden mountain, surrounded by smaller shrines; in the foreground a marked ‘first’ shrine named Pañcāṇḍaka, associated with the epithet Kesarī, suggesting lion-like grandeur or a patron/marker.
FAQs
The central shrine is treated as a divine residence—approaching it is akin to entering the gods’ own dwelling, with ordered subsidiary sanctuaries.
The Meru prāsāda at Someśvara in Prabhāsa-kṣetra, described as the foremost palace-temple.
No explicit rite; the verse provides hierarchical orientation (which shrine is central and which is first to be noted).