Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 12
पुरुषार्थाश्च सर्वे वै शक्तयो विविधाश्च याः । गंगायां सर्व एवैते सूक्ष्मरूपेण संस्थिताः
puruṣārthāśca sarve vai śaktayo vividhāśca yāḥ | gaṃgāyāṃ sarva evaite sūkṣmarūpeṇa saṃsthitāḥ
মানবজীবনের সকল পুরুষার্থ এবং নানাবিধ শক্তি—এই সবই গঙ্গার মধ্যে সূক্ষ্মরূপে প্রতিষ্ঠিত হয়ে বিরাজ করে।
Skanda
Tirtha: Gaṅgā (Kāśī-Gaṅgā)
Type: ghat
Scene: A wide Gaṅgā vista at dawn in Kāśī: the river rendered as a luminous goddess whose subtle aura contains symbolic emblems of the four puruṣārthas and radiating siddhi-śaktis, while pilgrims stand in reverent stillness on the ghāṭas.
FAQs
Gaṅgā is a complete path-support—she holds within herself the full spectrum of human flourishing up to liberation.
The Gaṅgā, especially as revered in Kāśī, as the subtle seat of puruṣārthas and śaktis.
Not explicit; the verse underwrites practices like Gaṅgā-snāna, japa, and tīrtha-sevā as means to attain puruṣārthas.