Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 85
क्षेत्रमेतत्त्रिशूलाग्रे शूलिनस्तिष्ठति द्विज । अंतरिक्षेन भूमिष्ठं नेक्षंते मूढबुद्धयः
kṣetrametattriśūlāgre śūlinastiṣṭhati dvija | aṃtarikṣena bhūmiṣṭhaṃ nekṣaṃte mūḍhabuddhayaḥ
يا أيها البرهميّ، إنّ هذا الموضع المقدّس قائمٌ على سنان رمح الثلاث شعب لحامل الثلاثي، شيفا. ومع أنّه ثابتٌ على الأرض، فإنّ أصحاب العقول المضلَّلة لا يدركونه، إذ له أيضًا طبيعة الفضاء الأوسط.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Avimukta / Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: A dvija (explicitly addressed) / sages
Scene: Śiva stands as cosmic pillar; from his triśūla rises a luminous miniature Kāśī-city at the tip, while ordinary townsfolk below see only mundane streets; sages perceive the radiant kṣetra hovering in mid-space.
FAQs
Kāśī’s holiness is not merely physical; it is a divine reality grasped through devotion and right understanding.
Avimukta/Kāśī, linked directly to Śiva as Śūlin (the trident-bearer).
No explicit ritual is given; the emphasis is on spiritual perception (darśana) and the kṣetra’s transcendence.