O noble king, listen to the wondrous tale of the sacred sites and their glories as recounted in the Skanda Purāṇa. Once, you yourself, foremost among kings, performed the holy rites of bathing and offering water at a sanctified place. Because of your devotion and these meritorious acts, this very site came to be known as Kulasaṃtāraṇa—“the Deliverance of the Lineage”—for here, by the power of this tīrtha, one could attain liberation for one’s entire family. It was decreed that you would return to this sacred spot in your very own body, such was the potency of this holy place. When the time came, you ascended a celestial vehicle, and, together with your kin, journeyed to heaven in your mortal form. Such is the extraordinary power of Kulasaṃtāraṇa, O royal sage! To witness one ascending to heaven in their own body is a marvel beyond compare. The place where you bathed thus became renowned as one of supreme merit, bestowing blessings upon all who came thereafter. This concludes the account of the glory of Kulasaṃtāraṇa Tīrtha. At this tīrtha, any mortal who bathes is cleansed of all sins, and the satisfaction of the ancestors endures until the very dissolution of the worlds. Long ago, before this, you performed severe austerities, seeking victory over your enemies. After three hundred years of penance, the great god Śiva, pleased with your devotion, appeared before you and granted you the supreme weapon known as Pāśupata. With a gentle smile, the Bull-bannered Lord spoke: “Endowed with this weapon, you shall be unconquerable among all embodied beings.” He further proclaimed: “This sacred water-reservoir is revered in all the three worlds, by both moving and unmoving beings. Those who, with concentrated mind, perform śrāddha here on the full moon day will receive the complete fruit of the ancestral rite.” It was here that Rāma, tormented by the grief of his father’s death, destroyed the kṣatriyas. To bring peace to his ancestors, he performed the ancestral offerings twenty-one times, moved by the sight of wounds on his mother’s body. Rāma declared, “Because my father, though an ascetic and a twice-born, was slain by kṣatriyas, I will offer water to him after making the earth devoid of kṣatriyas.” Therefore, it is said that one should diligently perform śrāddha at this tīrtha in every possible way. This concludes the narration of the glory of Rāmatīrtha. In another part of this sacred land, by the negligence of a king, a crore of holy fords—tīrthas—came into being. And when the terrible age of Kali arises on earth, know, O king, that there are thirty million and a half million sacred places inhabited by beings. A crore of tīrthas exists in Puṣkara, and likewise in Kurukṣetra, all protected by the gods and Indra himself. Whenever distress arises from fear, especially due to the encroachment of mlecchas, then three crore tīrthas manifest on earth. Therefore, one should make every effort to bathe at these sacred waters. All acts performed there—bathing, recitation, or offering oblations—bring immense merit. Thus ends the account of the power of Koṭitīrtha. Now, hear of another tīrtha, created by the lord of the night, Chandra, to remove the sins of people. This holy site was promised at the time of the eclipse of the moon and the sun. In that fearful hour, the moon, terrified by the formidable demon, pierced the peak of the mountain and made an excellent opening, seeking refuge. After a long time, Maheśvara, Lord Śiva, was pleased with the moon’s devotion. For the son of Siṃhikā—Rāhu—is powerful and difficult to subdue, and now, O best of the gods, he had tasted the nectar. Thus, O king, are the stories of these tīrthas and their immense power, as revealed in the sacred Skanda Purāṇa.