Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 79
वाराणसी स्फुरदसीमगुणैकभूमिर्यत्र स्थितास्तनुभृतःशशिभृत्प्रभावात् । सर्वे गले गरलिनोऽक्षियुजो ललाटे वामार्धवामतनवोऽतनवस्ततोंऽते
vārāṇasī sphuradasīmaguṇaikabhūmiryatra sthitāstanubhṛtaḥśaśibhṛtprabhāvāt | sarve gale garalino'kṣiyujo lalāṭe vāmārdhavāmatanavo'tanavastatoṃ'te
Vārāṇasī ist der einzigartige Boden, auf dem grenzenlose Vorzüge erstrahlen. Durch die Macht des mondbekrönten Herrn werden alle verkörperten Wesen, die dort weilen: im Hals wie der Giftträger, auf der Stirn wie der Dreiaugige, und in ihrer Gestalt, als teilten sie die glückverheißende linke Hälfte; so gelangen sie am Ende zu seinem körperlosen Zustand, der Befreiung.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśī-khaṇḍa commonly presents Skanda speaking to Agastya)
Tirtha: Vārāṇasī / Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis (frame typical; not explicit)
Scene: A panoramic Kāśī: devotees living ordinary lives yet bearing subtle Śiva-signs—blue-tinged throat glow, a luminous third eye on the forehead, and an aura suggesting Ardhanārīśvara’s auspicious left side—finally dissolving into formless light.
FAQs
Kāśī is portrayed as a uniquely transformative sacred space where Śiva’s grace makes devotees partake in His divine attributes, culminating in liberation beyond bodily limitation.
Vārāṇasī (Kāśī) itself is glorified as the supreme Śaiva kṣetra—an all-encompassing sacred geography rather than a single sub-tīrtha.
No explicit rite (snāna, dāna, japa, or vrata) is stated in this verse; it emphasizes the merit of abiding in Kāśī under Śiva’s influence leading toward mokṣa.