Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 9
अभीष्टदेवताश्चैव प्रणम्य गुरुसत्तमम् । नमस्कृत्य शुभान्देवान्रामादींश्च विशेषतः
abhīṣṭadevatāścaiva praṇamya gurusattamam | namaskṛtya śubhāndevānrāmādīṃśca viśeṣataḥ
اپنے پسندیدہ دیوتاؤں کو سجدۂ تعظیم کر کے اور افضل ترین گرو کو ساشٹانگ پرنام کر کے، اس نے مبارک دیوتاؤں کو—خصوصاً رام وغیرہ کو—عقیدت سے نمسکار پیش کیا۔
Narrative voice (contextual; likely Sūta continuing the maṅgalācaraṇa-style preface)
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya (implied by section)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis at Naimiṣāraṇya (standard Sūta frame; not explicit in this verse)
Scene: A narrator-devotee stands with folded hands, first bowing to a small shrine of his iṣṭa-devatā, then prostrating before a radiant guru seated on a simple āsana; behind them, auspicious deities are envisioned, with Rāma prominent.
FAQs
Begin sacred narration by honoring one’s iṣṭa-devatā and the guru, establishing humility and auspiciousness.
No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it functions as an invocation within the Dharmāraṇya context.
Praṇāma and namaskāra—devotional salutations to the guru and deities.