Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 76
बंधुजीवेऽधररुचिं कलहंसे कलागतीः । निक्षेपमिव सा क्षिप्त्वा शरद्यासीत्तपोरता
baṃdhujīve'dhararuciṃ kalahaṃse kalāgatīḥ | nikṣepamiva sā kṣiptvā śaradyāsīttaporatā
Indem sie—wie eine bloße Hinterlegung—das Rot ihrer Lippen, gleich der Bandhūka-Blüte, und die anmutigen Künste, wie den Gang des Schwans, von sich warf, trat sie in den Herbst ein, ganz der Tapas, der Askese, hingegeben.
Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa narrative voice)
Scene: Transition into autumn: the maiden removes ornaments/adornments, hair simply bound, lips no longer colored; she walks away from worldly arts toward a quiet austere grove under clear śarad skies.
FAQs
True purification comes from relinquishing attachment to beauty and accomplishment, choosing tapas as the higher ornament.
The verse supports the Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s sanctity by portraying tapas aligned with Kāśī’s purifying ethos, without naming a single tīrtha.
No specific ritual is stated; the prescription is ethical-spiritual: renunciation and sustained austerity.