Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 89
कार्तिके वर्जयेत्तैलं कार्तिके वर्जये न्मधु । कार्तिके वर्जयेत्कांस्यं कार्तिके चापिसंधितम्
kārtike varjayettailaṃ kārtike varjaye nmadhu | kārtike varjayetkāṃsyaṃ kārtike cāpisaṃdhitam
In Kārttika one should avoid oil; in Kārttika one should avoid honey. In Kārttika one should avoid bell-metal (kāṃsya), and in Kārttika also what is ‘compounded’ (saṃdhita)—mixed or combined foods and preparations.
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Scene: A Kārttika-vratin in Kāśī, seated near a ghat with simple leaf-plate fare, refusing rich foods; temple spires and lamps in the background, suggesting disciplined abstinence.
FAQs
Kārttika emphasizes austerity and purity; renunciation of certain comforts is treated as an offering to dharma.
No single tirtha is named; the verse is part of Kāśī Khaṇḍa’s Kārttika-vrata guidance.
Avoid oil, honey, bell-metal usage, and mixed/compounded preparations during Kārttika.