Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 73
मुक्ती कुर्वंति तीर्थानि ये च दुष्टावरोधतः । ममावरोधे ते मान्या औरसास्तनया इव
muktī kurvaṃti tīrthāni ye ca duṣṭāvarodhataḥ | mamāvarodhe te mānyā aurasāstanayā iva
যাঁরা দুষ্টদের নিবৃত্ত করে তীর্থকে মুক্তিদায়ক করতে সহায় হন—তাঁরা আমার পরিকরদের মধ্যে আমার কাছে নিজ ঔরস পুত্রের ন্যায় সম্মানিত।
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī-tīrthas (collective)
Type: ghat
Listener: Pilgrims/guardians/householders
Scene: Guardians or righteous officials prevent wrongdoers from disturbing pilgrims at a Kāśī ghāṭ; the tīrtha shines unobstructed, and a divine presence honors the protectors like sons.
FAQs
Guarding sacred spaces and preventing harm to pilgrims is itself a liberating service, honored as intimate devotion.
The verse speaks generally of tīrthas; within Kāśī Khaṇḍa it supports the theme of protecting holy geography like Kāśī and its pilgrimage culture.
No formal rite; it prescribes dharma-rakṣaṇa—restraining wrongdoers to preserve tīrtha sanctity.