Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 40
न कृतांत त एष बिभेभि हरप्रहराशु महाघममोघमते । नमतांतरमन्यदवैनि शिवं शिवपादनतेः प्रणतोस्मि ततः
na kṛtāṃta ta eṣa bibhebhi harapraharāśu mahāghamamoghamate | namatāṃtaramanyadavaini śivaṃ śivapādanateḥ praṇatosmi tataḥ
لا يُفزِعُ الموتُ هذا العبد، لأن ضربتَك السريعة، يا هارا، تُبيد الخطيئة العظمى—يا من لا يخطئ رأيه. لا أعرف للمنحنين ملجأً أعلى من شيفا؛ لذلك أسجد لذاك الذي أنحني عند قدميه.
Aṅgiras
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Audience within Kāśī-māhātmya frame
Scene: A devotee stands unafraid before Yama’s shadow; Śiva as Hara strikes swiftly, burning a mountain of sin; the devotee prostrates at Śiva’s feet, with Kāśī ghāṭa lamps flickering in the background.
FAQs
Taking refuge at Śiva’s feet dissolves the fear of death, because sin—the root of terror—is destroyed by His grace.
Kāśī is implied as the liberating sphere where devotion to Śiva overcomes death-fear.
Prostration/bowing at Śiva’s feet (pāda-nati) is highlighted as the core devotional act.