Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 78
शशकैर्मशकैः काश्यां यत्पदं हेलयाप्यते । तत्पदं नाप्यतेऽन्यत्र योगयुक्त्यापि योगिभिः
śaśakairmaśakaiḥ kāśyāṃ yatpadaṃ helayāpyate | tatpadaṃ nāpyate'nyatra yogayuktyāpi yogibhiḥ
Jener geistige Stand, der in Kāśī selbst leichtfertig, ja sogar von den geringsten Wesen erlangt wird, wird anderswo nicht erlangt, nicht einmal von Yogis durch strenge yogische Übung und Methode.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta-kṣetra)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Tiny creatures (hare, mosquito) near a Kāśī ghāṭa step touch the sacred ground; a luminous path rises from the kṣetra. In the distance, austere yogins in forests strive yet remain outside that radiance.
FAQs
In a supreme tīrtha like Kāśī, divine grace linked to sacred geography can surpass even arduous yogic striving elsewhere.
Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), presented as uniquely potent for attaining the highest spiritual state.
No direct ritual is prescribed; the verse contrasts effortless attainment in Kāśī with rigorous yogic discipline elsewhere.