Skandapurana 1.3.29: adhyāyaḥ 31

Śaunaka said: / After Tāraka was slain in battle by the great-souled Kumāra, / what great thing was done, O brahmin? You ought to tell all that.

Kumāra is indeed another Śambhu, by whom all this is pervaded; / Śambhu, pleased by austerity, grants the supreme state.

For Kumāra brings immediate fruit to mortals always upon darśana; / those who are sinful, most unrighteous, even dog-eaters, O Lomaśa, / their sins are washed away upon his darśana—there is no doubt.

Having heard the words of Śaunaka, Vyāsa's disciple, endowed with great intellect, / then spoke about the life of the great-souled Kumāra.

Lomaśa said: / Having slain that Tāraka in battle, whom the gods could not conquer / and who was invulnerable, O best of the twice-born, Kumāra attained victory.

For the majesty of Kumāra is proclaimed in all the scriptures, / by the Vedas, by his own āgamas, and likewise by the Purāṇas,

and likewise by the Upaniṣads, and by the two Mīmāṃsās; / such is this Kumāra, impossible to describe, O twice-born!

Hearing of the protector of this world, / who purifies the entire world by mere darśana, the king of the ancestors himself,

placing Brahmā in front, as well as Viṣṇu along with Indra, / went swiftly to Śaṃkara, the causer of welfare to the world; / becoming restrained, the lord of the southern quarter himself praised him:

"Salutations to the luminous god, salutations to the lord of the gods, / to the conqueror of death, to Rudra, to Īśāna, to the one with matted hair,

to the blue-throated one, to Śarva, whose body has the form of the sky, / salutations indeed to Time, to the lord of Time, to the one whose form is Time."

Thus praised by Yama, the lord Īśvara spoke: / "For what purpose have you come? Tell us all of that."

Yama said: / "Listen, O lord of the gods of gods, O eloquent speaker of words! / O Śaṃkara, you are pleased solely by supreme austerity.

Brahmā, the grandfather of the worlds, is pleased solely by supreme action; / there is no doubt that he is ever the lord of boons.

Likewise, the blessed eternal Viṣṇu, known through the Vedas, / is pleased by various sacrifices and by fasts and vows.

He grants pure devotion by which men may attain absolute liberation, / all of them; this is my view, and my word is never otherwise.

Being pleased, [one god] indeed grants enjoyment and the treasures of heaven and beyond; / Sūrya grants health here upon prostration, and not otherwise.

O Mahādeva, Gaṇeśa will indeed remove obstacles, O Śambhu, / through offerings of water, foot-wash, and sandalwood, and through the repetition of mantras.

Likewise, all other guardians of the world grant fruits according to ability, / being satisfied by sacrifice, study, giving, and the like, O Śaṃkara.

A great wonder has arisen here for all living beings; / the gate of heaven has been thrown open by your son.

And from the darśana of Kumāra, all men have become dwellers in heaven alone; / even sinners [have become so], O Mahādeva; there is no doubt about this.

What am I to do, O Lord, regarding the ordering of what should and should not be done? / Those who are truthful and peaceful, generous and unrestrained,

those of subdued senses, free from greed, devoid of lust and passion, / sacrificers devoted to dharma, proficient in the Vedas and Vedāṅgas—

that destination which all those of good deeds attain, O Śambhu, / that very destination even base outcastes reach from darśana

of Kumāra, O lord of the gods, whose deeds are of great wonder. / On the full-moon day of Kārttika joined with the constellation Kṛttikā, having seen the son of Śiva,

having seen the son of Śiva, they go along with their families / by many tens of millions, completely abandoning my abode.

From the darśana of Kumāra, even all outcastes go / swiftly to the good realm; what should be done by me now?"

Having heard Yama's words, Śaṃkara spoke these words:

Śaṃkara said: / "Those people of meritorious deeds whose sin has reached its end— / O Dharma, a purified disposition exists in their minds.

A great desire, caused by previous deeds, is born in them / precisely to go to true sacred fords and to have darśana of the virtuous here.

At the end of many births, through the habit of births, devotion to me / with all one's being persists in living beings, O Yama.

Therefore, all those are doers of good deeds in whom devotion persists; / one should not feel wonder at those who have continued through birth after birth.

Women, children, śūdras, and base outcastes, due to the impressions of previous births, O Dharma— / even while living in sinful wombs, such men become pure.

Likewise, they all come to have bright minds and become knowers of that in all matters; / by past destiny and former conduct, all the gods, Indra and others, and the guardians of the world exist due to previous deeds.

All these hosts of spirits, all these seers, and all these deities were born thus.

You should not feel wonder regarding Kumāra, / nor concerning the darśana of Kumāra; understand from me, O Dharmarāja!

Speech combined with action yields fruit to all; / all sacred fords, sacrifices, and various gifts / should be performed for the purification of the mind; there should be no deliberation on this.

The Self is indeed meditated upon by the mind, through oneself and as oneself; / and I, the Self, reside in all living beings.

I am ever endowed with contemplation, established in the Self, continuous / in both moving and unmoving beings; I tell you the truth.

Beyond dualities, without mental construction, directly present in oneself, eternal, ever-united, free from striving, / immovable indeed, set outside the arguments of diverse kalpas, to be known by awakening, infinite—

and forgetting this own Self, whose sole mark is awareness, / all the multitudes of living beings are seen as transmigrating beings.

I, Brahmā, and Viṣṇu: these three produce the qualities, / carrying out creation, preservation, and destruction; it cannot be otherwise.

We are caused to act by karma wrapped in egoity, / as are you, all the gods, human beings, birds, and the rest,

beasts and others, differentiated, and these many others— / diverse, fitting, and endowed with qualities in worldly existence.

Fallen into a mirage and brought under control by māyā, / we, all the gods, the wise, and those who consider themselves scholars,

censure one another, delighting in falsehood, wicked,

consisting of the three qualities, full of worldly existence, ignorant of the truth, impassioned, / endowed with desire, anger, fear, malice, pride, and envy,

censuring one another, ignorant of the truth, outward-facing. / Therefore, knowing thus what is unreal through the distinction of qualities,

and seeing solely the supreme truth in the reality that is beyond qualities—

in which difference becomes non-difference, in which passion becomes dispassion, / and anger attains angerlessness—hear of that supreme left [path]!

Sound does not illumine that, because [sound] is created, like a pot; / for sound is produced as a property whose ultimate nature is worldly activity.

Where activity and withdrawal, as well as pairs of opposites in every way, / dissolve away, that is considered the eternal state. (31.52)

Uninterrupted, devoid of qualities, pure awareness, stainless, unexpanded, desireless, / pure existence, reachable through knowledge, self-established, self-luminous, bright, approachable by wisdom. (31.53)

Those who know knowledge declare this knowledge; they perceive [all] with universal selfhood, / having known that which is beyond all, reachable through knowledge, by which they remain centered, acting with an even mind. (31.54)

Having transcended beginningless saṃsāra, made of illusion, difficult to discern through illusion, / having abandoned illusion, free from possessiveness, free from passion, O King of the departed, they attain the indeterminate state. (31.55)

Transmigratory existence has mental conceptualisation as its root; mental conceptualisation is indeed nectar-like [in its attraction]. / Those by whom mental conceptualisation has been abandoned attain the supreme goal. (31.56)

The notion of silver in mother-of-pearl, and the notion of a snake in a rope, / and the notion of water in a mirage: all are false, truly false, and not otherwise. (31.57)

Perfection is acting of one's own will; dependence on another is indeed false. / The bound one is called dependent on another; the liberated one is mindful of self-determination. (31.58)

Having known the Self as one, free from possessiveness and unimpeded, / where is bondage for them? It is just like a flower in the sky. (31.59)

This world and saṃsāra itself are indeed like the horns of a hare. / What is the use of saying much with useless words? (31.60)

Having cast aside possessiveness, desiring to reach the supreme state, / they are the knowers, the wise, free from passion, with senses conquered. (31.61)

Those by whom the sense of possessiveness is cast off, and greed and anger rejected, / free from desire and anger, go to the supreme state. (31.62)

As long as desire and greed, passion and aversion remain, / those who merely understand mere words do not attain that perfection. (31.63)

Yama said: / Sound arises from sound, whereas knowledge is soundless. / Why, O Lord, was the impermanence of sound spoken of by You? (31.64)

The supreme Brahman is the imperishable syllable, while sound consists of syllables. / Therefore, it is heard that sound was spoken of by You as an observer. (31.65)

Whatever is to be demonstrated, how can it be done without sound? / Tell all that, O Śambhu, regarding what should and should not be done. (31.66)

Śaṃkara said: / Listen with attention to this speech endowed with the supreme truth, / by merely hearing which nothing remains to be known. (31.67)

All the seers who discuss knowledge, free from blemish, / abide through the practice of knowledge; those who know knowledge know knowledge. (31.68)

Knowledge, the object of knowledge, and that which is reachable through knowledge, having been known, are praised. / How, and by whom is it to be known? What is intended to be said about it? (31.69)

I shall tell you all this in brief; understand it from Me: / The One is indeed seen in many forms by one who perceives distinction. (31.70)

Just as the earth seems to spin to one suffering from dizziness, O Yama, / so the Self appears manifold through the intellect that perceives duality. (31.71)

Therefore, having reflected with that, It is to be known through hearing, / and must be reflected upon with proper application, especially through contemplation. (31.72)

Having ascertained the Self by the Self, one is easily freed from bondage. / All this moving and unmoving world is a web of illusion. (31.73)

This great saṃsāra is made of illusion, characterised by possessiveness. / Casting possessiveness outside, one is easily freed from bondage. (31.74)

Who am I? Who are you? From where are the others relying on the great illusion? / Like the dewlap of a goat, this phenomenal expansion is useless. (31.75)

It is fruitless, unreal, substanceless, an ostentation of smoke. / Therefore, with all effort, remember the Self, O Yama. (31.76)

Lomaśa said: / Having been thus urged by Śambhu Himself, the King of the departed, / Yama, having become awakened, then became directly identical with the Self. (31.77)

The punisher of all actions in accordance with karma / became composed, [free from] the display of men and living beings. (31.78)

The seers said: / When Tāraka was slain in battle by the great-souled Kumāra, / tell us, sir, what great wonder was done thereafter? (31.79)

Sūta said: / When the demon Tāraka was slain, the mountains led by Himavat, / having approached Kārttikeya, praised him with delightful words. (31.80)

The mountains said: / Homage to you whose form is auspiciousness, homage to you, universal auspiciousness! / Homage to you, friend of the universe! Homage to you, source of the universe! (31.81)

By you, through your sight, even outcasts have been made the best. / We bow to you, the friend of the world; we have taken refuge in you. (31.82)

Homage to you, son of Pārvatī! Son of Śaṃkara, homage to you! / Homage to you, son of the Kṛttikās! Born from fire, homage to you! (31.83)

Homage to you, well-worshipped by the best of gods! Homage to you, foremost among the knowers of knowledge! / Homage to you, best of gods, be pleased, O refuge, expert in destroying all distress! (31.84)

Thus praised by the mountains, Kārttikeya, the son of Umā, / with a very gracious mind, was eager to grant a boon to those mountains. (31.85)

Kārttikeya said: / O best of mountains, listen now to my words: / You will be served by men of action and by men of knowledge. (31.86)

The stones existing upon you, when worshipped with effort, / will purify the universe by my word; there is no doubt in this. (31.87)

There will be sacred fords on mountains—it will not be otherwise— / and divine abodes of Śiva, and divine shrines. (31.88)

Diverse, beautiful, and great dwelling places / will arise, O mountains, by my word; of this there is no doubt. (31.89)

This maternal grandfather of mine, Himavat, the best of mountains, / highly fortunate, will indeed bestow fruit upon ascetics. (31.90)

And Meru, this king of mountains, will be a sanctuary; / and Lokāloka, the best of mountains, and the glorious Udayādri. (31.91)

The Lord will indeed assume the form of a liṅga, and not otherwise, / on Śrīśaila, Mahendra, and also the Sahyācala mountain. (31.92)

Mālyavān, Malaya, Vindhya, and likewise Gandhamādana,
Śvetakūṭa, Trikūṭa, and likewise the Dardura mountain, 31.93

these and many other mountains shall assume the form of a liṅga
by my word, destroying sins. 31.94

Thus the son of Śaṃkara granted a boon to those mountains.
Then Nandī spoke, honouring all the scriptures: 31.95

Nandī said:
Indeed, the mountains have been made into the form of liṅgas by you;
how then, O Lord, are these abodes of Śiva to be worshipped by all the deities? 31.96

Kumāra said:
A liṅga should be known as the abode of Śiva, the God of gods who holds the trident,
[to be worshipped] untiringly by all mortals, deities, Brahmā, and the rest. 31.97

Sapphire, pearl, coral, cat's eye, and moonstone,
hessonite, ruby, emerald, and also gold, 31.98

silver, copper, brass, and supreme lead:
thus the liṅgas made of gems and metals have been spoken of to you. 31.99

They are pure, worthy of worship, and bestow all desires;
yet superior to all of these is the one made of saffron. 31.100

It bestows everything pertaining to this world and the next upon its worshipper. 31.101

Nandī said:
Why has the Bāṇaliṅga been declared by you
as the most excellent to be worshipped among liṅgas? Speak all that, O you of noble vows! 31.102

Kumāra said:
The stones that are seen in the waters of the Revā,
they indeed, through the grace of Śiva, are forms of the liṅga, and not otherwise. 31.103

They should be made smooth at the base and placed upon a pedestal;
they should be worshipped with effort by one endowed with Śaiva initiation. 31.104

And one should worship Śiva united with the pedestal according to scriptural rule;
the Lord of the universe is indeed the giver of boons to the worshipper, not otherwise. 31.105

In whose mouth the five-syllable mantra is ever present, whose mind is withdrawn into meditation on Śiva,
who is impartial toward living beings, mute to slander, and truly impotent toward the wives of others— 31.106

Thus ends the thirty-first chapter, entitled 'Description of the Glory of the Śivaliṅga Spoken by Kārttikeya', in the Kedārakhaṇḍa of the Śivaśāstra, in the first Māheśvarakhaṇḍa of the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa consisting of eighty-one thousand verses. 31.