Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 5
ईश्वर उवाच । आसीत्त्रेतायुगे पूर्वं राजा स्वायंभुवेंतरे । श्वेतकेतुरिति ख्यातो राजर्षिः सुमहातपाः
īśvara uvāca | āsīttretāyuge pūrvaṃ rājā svāyaṃbhuveṃtare | śvetaketuriti khyāto rājarṣiḥ sumahātapāḥ
自在天说道：“往昔在特雷塔纪（Tretā Yuga），于自生者摩奴期（Svāyambhuva Manvantara），有一位国王名闻为白幢（Śvetaketu），乃王仙之尊，苦行功德极其广大。”
Īśvara (Śiva)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (context for Śvetaketu’s liṅga)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Devī
Scene: Īśvara narrates: a Tretā-yuga king Śvetaketu, radiant yet austere, appears in a timeless tableau—royal insignia subdued by ascetic marks, indicating rājarṣi status.
FAQs
Purāṇic dharma honors rulers who become rājarṣis—joining governance with tapas—showing that spiritual greatness can arise within worldly duty.
The narrative is being set up for Prabhāsakṣetra, where Śvetaketu’s devotion will be anchored.
None directly; the verse introduces the exemplary devotee whose tapas becomes the basis for the site’s sanctity.