Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 24
स एवं चिन्तयामास वेदवेदांगपारगः । मानसं यज्ञमारभ्य तत्रैव वरवर्णिनि
sa evaṃ cintayāmāsa vedavedāṃgapāragaḥ | mānasaṃ yajñamārabhya tatraiva varavarṇini
یوں وہ برہمن، جو وید اور ویدانگ میں کامل مہارت رکھتا تھا، اپنے دل میں غور کرتا رہا؛ اور اے خوش رنگ خاتون، اسی جگہ اس نے ذہنی یَجْیَ کا آغاز کیا۔
Īśvara (Śiva) (deduced from surrounding verses in this adhyāya)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: A 'varavarṇinī' (fair-complexioned lady) is directly addressed in the verse; broader audience is the listening assembly
Scene: A Veda- and Vedāṅga-versed brāhmaṇa, trapped or stationed in a well, begins a mental yajña—an inner altar formed by concentration—while addressing context includes a woman interlocutor in the narration.
FAQs
Even without external resources, sincere inner worship—performed as a mental yajña—has real spiritual efficacy when grounded in Vedic understanding and faith.
Prabhāsakṣetra (Prabhāsa), within the Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa’s Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya.
The commencement of a mānasa-yajña (mental sacrifice), emphasizing intention and devotion as a valid form of worship.