Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 4
न वर्षंति यदाभ्राणि न प्रावर्तंत निम्रगाः । जलाभिलाषो न यदा स्नानपानादि कर्मणि
na varṣaṃti yadābhrāṇi na prāvartaṃta nimragāḥ | jalābhilāṣo na yadā snānapānādi karmaṇi
When the clouds no longer rain and the rivers cease to flow—when even the longing for water vanishes for acts such as bathing and drinking—(then the world falls into distress).
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (contextual frame)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A parched landscape under cloudless skies; cracked riverbeds; people with empty pots; ritual platforms abandoned for lack of water—setting a somber prelude to Kāśī’s promise.
FAQs
It portrays a breakdown of sustaining order—when nature and ritual support fail—preparing the mind to seek an unfailing refuge in the sacred kṣetra and in dharma.
The surrounding passage belongs to the Kāśī-kṣetra Māhātmya in the Kāśī Khaṇḍa, pointing toward Vārāṇasī (Kāśī) as the liberating field.
Snāna (bathing) and pāna (drinking) are referenced as essential acts dependent on water; no specific vow is prescribed in this verse.