Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 51
काश्यां रुद्रस्थली सा तु पठ्यते वेदवादिभिः । रुद्रस्थल्यां मृता ये वै कृमिकीटपतंगकाः
kāśyāṃ rudrasthalī sā tu paṭhyate vedavādibhiḥ | rudrasthalyāṃ mṛtā ye vai kṛmikīṭapataṃgakāḥ
In Kāśī, that place is renowned among the expounders of the Vedas as “Rudrasthalī.” Indeed, even worms, insects, and moths that die in Rudrasthalī…
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Rudrasthalī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Not stated in the provided excerpt
Scene: Sages proclaim the fame of Rudrasthalī; the scene shifts to tiny creatures—worms and moths—passing away within the sacred boundary, bathed in a gentle Rudra-light that suggests liberation rather than fear.
FAQs
The sanctity of Kāśī is depicted as so great that even the lowest forms of life benefit from contact with its sacred ground.
Rudrasthalī in Kāśī.
No explicit ritual; the verse begins a teaching on the salvific power of dying within Rudrasthalī.