Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 2
पीत्वा वर्षसहस्रं वै कणधूमं सुदुःसहम् । यः प्राप्तवान्महाविद्यां मृत्युसंजीविनीं हरात्
pītvā varṣasahasraṃ vai kaṇadhūmaṃ suduḥsaham | yaḥ prāptavānmahāvidyāṃ mṛtyusaṃjīvinīṃ harāt
واقعی ہزار برس تک اس نے ذرّات کے دھوئیں کو، جو نہایت ناقابلِ برداشت تھا، پی لیا؛ تب ہَر (شیو) سے اس نے ‘مرتْیو سنجیونی’ نامی مہاوِدیا حاصل کی۔
Gaṇas (attendants of Śiva)
Listener: Śivaśarman
Scene: Śukra performs extreme austerity—drinking harsh, smoky particulate fumes for a thousand years—until Śiva (Hara) bestows the Mṛtyu-saṃjīvinī vidyā; the scene contrasts ascetic suffering with the sudden radiance of divine revelation.
FAQs
Severe tapas and single-minded pursuit of divine grace can yield extraordinary spiritual knowledge.
No tīrtha is specified; the verse highlights the source of the vidyā—Hara (Śiva).
Tapas characterized by enduring extreme hardship for a prolonged period is implied as the means to attain the vidyā.