Canto 1 - Boyhood
Bāla-kāṇḍa
Chapter 37: The History of Skanda
Text 1.37.1
तप्यमाने तपो देवे देवाः सर्षिगणाः पुरा।
सेनापतिमभीप्सन्तः पितामहमुपागमन्॥
tapyamāne tapo deve devāḥ sarṣi-gaṇāḥ purā
senāpatim abhīpsantaḥ pitāmaham upāgaman
tapyamāne tapaḥ = was engaged in austerity; deve = Lord Śiva; devāḥ = the demigods; sa-ṛṣi-gaṇāḥ = and sages; purā = in the past; senā-patim = a commander-in-chief; abhīpsantaḥ = desiring; pitāmaham = grandfather Brahmā; upāgaman = approached.
When Lord Śiva was engaged in austerities, the demigods and sages approached Grandfather Brahmā desiring a commander-in-chief.
1 Therefore, the demigods approached Lord Brahmā.
This chapter describes the divine glorious appearance of Gaṅgā by generating Skanda. Lord Śiva was performing austerities not for producing a son to become a commander-in-chief of the demigods.1