Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 57
अतीव दूये वीक्ष्य त्वां सुकुमारतराकृतिम् । अत्युग्रतपसा क्लिष्टा पद्मिनीव हिमर्दिता
atīva dūye vīkṣya tvāṃ sukumāratarākṛtim | atyugratapasā kliṣṭā padminīva himarditā
“Lubha akong nagdadalamhati sa pagtanaw sa iyo—napakalambot at maselan ng anyo—na pinahihirapan ng napakabangis na tapas, na wari’y halamang lotus na binayo ng hamog na nagyeyelo.”
Brahmacārin/Vratī (ascetic) addressing Pārvatī
Tirtha: Himālaya tapas-bhūmi (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Devī, delicate as a lotus, is shown enduring harsh austerity in cold; frost-laden air, pale light, and the speaker’s grief are foregrounded; the lotus metaphor can be visualized literally or symbolically.
FAQs
Tapas is powerful but should be tempered with discernment; compassion recognizes the cost of extreme austerity.
No specific tīrtha is mentioned; the verse is poetic description within the narrative.
None; it comments on the severity of tapas rather than prescribing a rite.