Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 32
तपनस्तप्यतेऽत्यर्थं दहनोपि हि दह्यते । यत्तीव्रतपसाद्यापि चपलाऽचपलाभवत्
tapanastapyate'tyarthaṃ dahanopi hi dahyate | yattīvratapasādyāpi capalā'capalābhavat
Die Sonne scheint übermäßig versengt, und selbst das Feuer, als würde es verbrannt; denn durch die Heftigkeit des Tapas wurde sogar das von Natur Unruhige standhaft und unbeweglich.
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Scene: A paradoxical tableau: the ascetic’s fierce tapas makes the sun seem scorched and fire seem burned; the restless becomes unmoving—depicted as a calm center amid overwhelming heat.
FAQs
Tapas is transformative: it can steady even the naturally restless, surpassing ordinary heat symbolized by sun and fire.
The implied setting remains Kāśī in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa, where such tapas is celebrated as especially potent.
The prescription is tīvra-tapas (intense austerity) aimed at conquering capalatā (restlessness) and establishing steadiness.