Skandapurana 6.1.5

Vyāsa said:

When that battle between the two born of blood and sweat was prevented in former times,

what was done there by Brahmā, and what was the expiation of the deeds?

What deed was performed by Janārdana and by Śaṃkara, O sage?

Declare all this; be gracious, O best of speakers!

Sanatkumāra said:

Brahmā, offering the agnihotra oblation with wild herbs, fruits, and leaves,

and with auspicious kuśa grass and kindling sticks, as had been previously spoken by Hari,

and the seers Nara and Nārāyaṇa, having reached the hermitage of Badarī,

practised fierce austerity for the benefit of all living beings.

The lord of gods, holding a skull in his hand, wandering about this earth,

reached Kuśasthalī and entered that excellent forest,

strewn with various trees and creepers, adorned with diverse flowers,

filled with the calls of various birds, and teeming with diverse deer,

scented by the pleasant wind bearing the fragrance of masses of tree-blossoms,

as though well-worshipped with fruits and flowers laid out intentionally,

and rich with ripe and unripe fruits bearing various scents and tastes,

charming on all sides with fruits richly endowed with golden beauty.

The winds tossed outside withered leaves, grass, and the like,

as well as the dried wood and fruits that had fallen, doing a favour [to the forest].

Bearing the fragrance of clusters of various flowers,

the cool wind blew upon that region of the earth where he entered,

adorned with countless trees bearing leafy crests, / with green, glossy, flawless leaves and hollows free from cracks;

and trees endowed with tops adorned with countless leaves,

free from disease, lovely to look upon, well-rounded, and here and there tall,

perfection shone on all sides, as if in the households of brahmins.

Trees covered with beautiful shoots stirred by the breeze,

like men surrounded by their own noble and faultless kin,

with tops shaken by the wind, made contact with one another;

their crests of branches gently touched one another from nearby due to the wind.

Here and there the nāga trees, with flowers whose filaments were covered with rows of bees,

shone like white eyes with dark pupils.

Here and there karṇikāra trees with tops laden with flowers

shone like noble couples pair by pair at a wedding.

With the lavish display of their fine flowers, the rows of sinduvāra trees

shone like worshiped forest deities incarnate in bodily form. (17)

Here and there, jasmine creepers, bright with their ornaments of beautiful blossoms,

shone forth in every direction like rising crescent moons. (18)

Rich with the exceptional beauty of coral, shining yūthikā creepers

stood up in full bloom, as if fanning the flowering branches. (19)

Here and there in the forest clearings blossomed śāla and arjuna trees,

looking like noble men clad in washed garments of silk. (20)

And the trees, entwined without restraint by flowering creepers,

shone forth like dearly loved husbands embraced by their women. (21)

Mango trees and tilaka trees, with their flower clusters as hands

yielded by the wind, seemed to present offerings to virtuous guests. (22)

And with the interwoven shoots of tilaka and aśoka trees,

they seemed like friends united in heart touching hand to hand. (23)

Bending low with fruit and flowers, like gentle and noble men,

the trees seemed to offer each other fruits and flowers. (24)

Trees, gladdened when embraced by the wind with the waters of rice-fields,

stood like noble men assembled in the world offering gifts of affection. (25)

As if with the swiftness of blooms, they advanced for their own adornment,

like men donning equal armor in rivalry. (26)

Upon treetops trembling and bent down under the weight of floral splendor,

intoxicated birds danced, adorned with handsome crests. (27)

Bees resting on heavenly creepers tossed by the wind,

danced along with the vines like men with their beloveds. (28)

Trees covered here and there with flowering jasmine creepers

shone like the autumn sky studded with diverse constellations of stars. (29)

And upon the tops of the trees, flowering mādhavī creepers

shone like ornamental crests fashioned with deliberate artistry. (30)

Green and having the luster of gold, the fruiting and flowering trees

seemed to display friendship, like men in the assembly of the virtuous. (31)

Teeming with floral filaments, their hollows filled with filaments,

with honeybees intoxicated by filaments, they were clear like myna birds. (32)

Resembling śirīṣa blossoms, parrots in pairs here and there

uttered variegated sounds, like honored brahmins [chanting]. (33)

Accompanied by their mates, peacocks with wondrous plumage

stood deep within the woods, as if residing in solitude. (34)

Flocks of birds, warbling in various wonderful tones, sang aloud;

indeed, they made the delightful forest yet more delightful. (35)

Teeming with diverse herds of beasts, constantly filled with rejoicing birds,

that forest equaled Nandana, gladdening the mind and the eyes. (36)

The Lord with a skull in his hand, Śaṃkara,

beheld that supreme forest resembling Nandana with a gentle gaze. (37)

Seeing that Rudra had arrived, all those rows of trees,

offering them to Śambhu with devotion, showered their abundance of flowers. (38)

Accepting the flowers of the trees, Maheśvara

said to the trees: “Choose a boon, may good fortune be yours!” (39)

When the Lord spoke thus, the unrestrained trees,

bowing to Maheśvara with folded hands, all spoke: (40)

“O Lord of gods, who grant boons, gracious one, fond of your devotees,

O Lord, be ever present right here in this forest! (41)

This is our supreme desire, O God of gods, homage to you!

If you reside in this forest, O Lord of gods, Creator of all things, (42)

then we, having sought refuge with all our soul, ask for this supreme boon.

What need is there for crores of other boons? Let this boon be granted to us!” (43)

Thus addressed by all the trees, he who is affectionate to those seeking refuge

granted a boon to the trees; hear it as spoken by me: (44)

Maheśvara said:

“Indeed, by my will, my dwelling shall forever be here in this supreme forest.

I grant you a further boon, for darśana of me is never in vain: (45)

Neither fire, nor wind, nor water, nor the heat of the sun's rays [shall harm you]…”

Neither lightning, thunderbolt, nor cold shall produce affliction in you.

Ever endowed with choice blossoms, ever steadfast in youth,

Moving at will, changing form at will, and yielding fruits of whatever form desired,

Pleasing to the sight of men whose eyes blaze with twilight austerities,

Endowed with supreme splendor, you shall become [such] by my grace."

Having thus granted boons, Śambhu favored the trees.

Having stayed for a thousand years, he cast down the skull upon the earth.

As it fell upon the ground, Rasātala trembled;

Helpless, the oceans with their agitated waves abandoned their shores.

As if struck by Indra's thunderbolt, and accompanied by tigers and serpents,

The peaks of mountains shattered in their thousands.

The aerial chariots of gods and siddhas, and the cities of gandharvas,

Trembling, crashed down and were destroyed on the surface of the earth.

Pigeon-gray clouds and countless dense masses appearing again,

Veiling the luminous planets, made the sun disappear.

By the tremendous roar of it, [creatures] were made stunned, blind, and deaf;

All the three worlds, with both moving and unmoving beings, were confounded.

The bodies and minds of all the gods and asuras

Trembled helplessly, and they wondered, "What is this?"

Taking courage, all of them gathered, led by Indra,

Reached the world of Brahmā, and spoke this to Brahmā:

"O Lord, what is the cause of this manifestation of portents,

By which the three worlds have been shaken, joined with the workings of Time?

Has the end of the kalpa arrived, with the oceans bursting their bounds?

Have the four elephants of the quarters and the immovable [mountains] become shaken?

Why is the earth submerged by the waters of the seven oceans?

There is no destruction of everything, O Lord, nor any reason for it.

Such a sound has been heard as was never heard nor known before,

Which, fiercely roaring and formidable, has thrown the three worlds into turmoil."

Addressed thus, Brahmā spoke, enlightened by the Supreme Lord;

Having gained knowledge by his grace, and knowing that Rudra was present [there]:

"All you gods, listen to the cause of that which you have asked;

It should be understood with certainty here by the faithful according to the truth.

Having severed with the tip of his fingernail the fifth head from my body,

The Lord, with the skull in his hand, went to the hermitage of Viṣṇu.

Taking the vessel, he begged for alms from Lord Nārāyaṇa.

There leaped forth a sage, an archer named Nara.

Then, having arrived at Kuśasthalī, the Lord entered that excellent forest

Through a pathway of trees, delighted by the fragrance of blossoms.

Then the Lord, having favored that forest where all creatures wander,

Chose to dwell there for the benefit of the universe.

That skull which was in his hand was cast down upon the earth by the Lord;

By that, this earth has been shaken, and the three worlds thrown into turmoil.

Therefore, you shall see the three-eyed one; surrender [to him] along with me.

When propitiated, the Lord will indeed grant you a boon."

Having spoken thus, the divine Brahmā, together with those gods and dānavas,

Went to that forest region where the bull-bannered [Śiva] resides.

All with joyful minds, desiring to see Śaṃkara,

Entered the border echoing with the warbling of cuckoos and strewn with heaps of flowers.

All of them reached that forest comparable to the Nandana [grove];

Rich with the beauty of lovely bowers of creepers, it then shone exceedingly firm.

Seeing that excellent forest, which gladdens the hearts of embodied beings and is visited on all sides by groves of trees bearing various good fruits and flowers,

Filled with flocks of peacocks, geese, and cranes, and with frogs and fish, those gods then felt joy in their hearts, [thinking,] "Here we shall see Hara."

Thus ends the fifth chapter, titled 'Description of the Arrival of the Gods,' in the Avantīkṣetramāhātmya of the fifth, Āvantyakhaṇḍa, in the Skandapurāṇa of eighty-one thousand verses.