Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 62
ऊरुद्वयं च विपुला ललिता च जानू जंघे जवाऽवतु कठोरतरात्र गुल्फौ । पादौ रसातलचरांगुलिदेशमुग्रा चांद्री नखान्त्पदतलं तलवासिनी च
ūrudvayaṃ ca vipulā lalitā ca jānū jaṃghe javā'vatu kaṭhoratarātra gulphau | pādau rasātalacarāṃgulideśamugrā cāṃdrī nakhāntpadatalaṃ talavāsinī ca
May Vipulā protect my two thighs; may Lalitā protect my knees. May Javā safeguard my shanks, and may the exceedingly firm one protect my ankles. May Mugrā, who subdues even netherworldly beings, protect my feet and toes; may Cāndrī protect my toenails and soles; and may Talavāsinī guard the undersides of my feet.
Skanda (contextual, Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (general protective kavaca within Kāśī context)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A devotee in Kāśī mentally encircles the lower limbs with radiant Devī-forms—Vipulā at the thighs, Lalitā at the knees, Javā at the shanks, a firm guardian at the ankles, Mugrā subduing netherworld beings at the feet and toes, Cāndrī shining at nails and soles, Talavāsinī guarding the underside of the feet—while the Gaṅgā and temple silhouettes glow in the background.
FAQs
Devī’s protection is invoked as an all-encompassing ‘kavaca’—a disciplined remembrance that turns fear into faith and steadiness in dharma.
The broader setting is Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa, where Devī’s protective grace is praised alongside Kāśī’s sanctity.
This verse functions as a kavaca-style recitation—an instruction by usage: chant to invoke protection over specific limbs.