Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 7
महतो विरहस्य शंकरः प्रसभंतस्यवशी वशंगतः । विविदेन सुरैः सदोगतैरपि संवीतसुतापवेष्टितः
mahato virahasya śaṃkaraḥ prasabhaṃtasyavaśī vaśaṃgataḥ | vividena suraiḥ sadogatairapi saṃvītasutāpaveṣṭitaḥ
Śaṅkara, though the Master, was forcibly brought under the sway of that great separation; and though surrounded by the gods in many ways, he remained wrapped in intense inner torment.
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Avimukta-Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: null
Scene: Śaṅkara, though surrounded by gods, sits withdrawn, wrapped in an invisible sheath of inner heat—his mastery paradoxically subdued by the force of separation from Kāśī.
FAQs
The verse magnifies Kāśī’s greatness by depicting even Śiva as “overpowered” by longing for it, teaching the unparalleled spiritual magnetism of the holy city.
Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), implied as the object of Śiva’s overwhelming separation.
None; the emphasis is devotional-poetic praise (māhātmya) rather than instruction.