Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 31
गणावूचतुः । इति गंधवती पुर्याः स्वरूपं ते निरूपितम् । तस्याः प्राच्यां कुबेरस्य श्रीमत्येषालकापुरी
gaṇāvūcatuḥ | iti gaṃdhavatī puryāḥ svarūpaṃ te nirūpitam | tasyāḥ prācyāṃ kuberasya śrīmatyeṣālakāpurī
The Gaṇas said: “Thus the true nature of the Fragrant City has been set forth to you. To its east lies Kubera’s splendid city—Alakā.”
Gaṇas (Śiva’s attendants)
Tirtha: Gandhavatī-purī (contextual sacred city within Kāśī description)
Type: kshetra
Listener: ‘te’ (the addressed recipient within the narrative; likely a sage/pilgrim interlocutor in the chapter’s frame)
Scene: Śiva’s gaṇas speak as guides, describing Gandhavatī-purī and pointing eastward to the splendid Alakā of Kubera—depicted as a jeweled celestial city beyond the sacred precinct.
FAQs
Purāṇic teaching often uses sacred geography to frame devotion—mapping divine realms around holy cities to intensify reverence.
Gandhavatī-purī (a celebrated sacred city/realm in the narrative), with reference to Alakā-purī of Kubera.
None; this verse is descriptive (geographic/cosmographic).