Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 22
मूर्तं भयानकमिव सर्वप्राणिभयप्रदम् । हृदयाकंपनं दृष्ट्वा तं प्रेतं वृद्धतापसः । अतिदीनाननं कस्त्वमिति धैर्येण पृष्टवान्
mūrtaṃ bhayānakamiva sarvaprāṇibhayapradam | hṛdayākaṃpanaṃ dṛṣṭvā taṃ pretaṃ vṛddhatāpasaḥ | atidīnānanaṃ kastvamiti dhairyeṇa pṛṣṭavān
Als der alte Asket diesen Preta sah – wie die manifestierte Angst, der allen Wesen Schrecken einflößt und das Herz erzittern lässt –, fragte er mit festem Mut: „O du mit dem beklagenswertesten Gesicht, wer bist du?“
Skanda (narrating); within the story an aged ascetic speaks to the preta
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣi-sabhā (frame implied)
Scene: An aged ascetic stands firm, unshaken, facing a terrifying preta that seems like embodied fear; the ascetic’s calm posture contrasts with the preta’s pitiable face and menacing aura.
FAQs
True tapas is courage joined with compassion—meeting terror with steady inquiry that can lead to liberation.
Kāśī is the sacred stage where such transformative encounters and teachings unfold in the Skanda Purāṇa.
None explicitly; the verse introduces a moral dialogue rather than a rite.