Skandapurana 6.3.32

English (machine translation) 6.3.32

Language: English

6.3.32.1

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya said:
Then one should go to Pattreśvara, which destroys all sins,
where the illustrious and powerful son of Citrasena attained perfection.

6.3.32.2

Yudhiṣṭhira said:
Who was he, of great austerity, that attained perfection then at that sacred ford, O holy one?
Whose son was he, and what was the reason? This I wish to know.

6.3.32.3

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya said:
Formerly, there was one named Citra of great splendour, beloved of Indra;
his son, O best of kings, was renowned as Pattreśvara.

6.3.32.4

He was handsome, fortunate, causing terror to all enemies,
exceedingly dear to Indra, and also known as Jaya.

6.3.32.5

Once, in the midst of the assembly at a gathering of all the gods,
he was completely infatuated for a long time, it is said, by Menakā's dance and song.

6.3.32.6

Transgressing all bounds of decorum, he stood as if lifeless in an instant;
then the god, the lord of the gods, cursed the one who had not conquered his senses:

6.3.32.7

"Since you, though residing in heaven, have succumbed to mortal conduct,
therefore you shall undoubtedly spend a long time among mortals."

6.3.32.8

Thus addressed by the lord of gods, the young son of Citrasena,
trembling, the foremost of gods, spoke with folded hands:

6.3.32.9

Pattreśvara said:
"I am a sinful fool, whose mind had not mastered its senses;
for whatever result has been incurred, you ought to grant grace."

6.3.32.10

Śakra said:
"Taking refuge on the bank of the Narmadā for twelve years with senses controlled,
worship the peaceful Śiva; you shall attain the good path once again.

6.3.32.11

This world is for those devoted to truth and purity, the highly righteous who have conquered themselves,
not for sinners; such is the determination of scripture."

6.3.32.12

When thus addressed by the wise thousand-eyed [Indra], O great king,
the wise son of the Gandharva, having bowed, went to the earth's surface.

6.3.32.13

In the clear waters of the Revā, near Brahmāvarta,
having bathed, recited prayers according to rule, and worshipped Śaṅkara,

6.3.32.14

he performed austerities with the severe discipline of the five fires, eating air, water, oil-cake, fruits, / flowers, leaves, roots, and barley gruel; then the god attained satisfaction.

6.3.32.15

Seeing him before him—bow in hand, the boon-giver with the trident, husband of Umā, destroyer of Andhaka, / crescent-moon on his crest, clad in an elephant hide—he fell down, beholding him.

6.3.32.16

Īśvara said:
"Choose a boon, bless you; I am your boon-giver, O sinless one.
Whatever you desire, I give today; no hesitation should be made here."

6.3.32.17

Pattreśvara said:
"If you are pleased, O lord of gods, if a boon is to be given to me,
remain perpetually at this sacred ford by my name, O lord."

6.3.32.18

Having heard this, Mahādeva Śaṅkara, with a voice choked with joy,
said 'So be it,' and departed delighted along with Umā.

6.3.32.19

When the god had gone to heaven, he too, having immersed himself in that sacred ford,
having bathed according to the rule of recitation, and having again offered libations to the ancestors,

6.3.32.20

installed the lord of gods at that sacred ford according to rule—
[the liṅga] renowned in the three worlds as Pattreśvara, O descendant of Bharata.

6.3.32.21

He also, freed from the curse, went to the realm of Indra, O king of men,
delighted and rejoiced with auspicious sounds of victory and the like.

6.3.32.22

This answer has been told to you regarding what you asked, O Yudhiṣṭhira;
by a single bath there, one is freed from all sins.

6.3.32.23

Whoever should worship Mahādeva at that sacred ford, O Yudhiṣṭhira,
having bathed and worshipped the ancestors and gods, attains the fruit of a horse-sacrifice.

6.3.32.24

When dead, having sported for fully a hundred years in Śiva's city,
he is afterwards born among mortals as a king or equal to a king,

6.3.32.25

knowing the truth of the Vedas and Vedāṅgas; and he lives for a hundred autumns,
freed from disease and grief, and again remembers that water.

Thus ends the thirty-second chapter, named the description of the greatness of the Patreśvara sacred ford, in the Revākhaṇḍa of the fifth Avantyakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skandapurāṇa, the great Purāṇa, in a collection of eighty-one thousand verses.

Linked texts (1)

Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit