Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 37
मृडस्त्वमेव श्रुतिवर्त्मगेषु त्वमेव भीमोऽश्रुतिवर्त्मगेषु । त्वं शंकरः सोमसुभक्तिभाजामुग्रोसि रुद्र त्वमभक्तिभाजाम्
mṛḍastvameva śrutivartmageṣu tvameva bhīmo'śrutivartmageṣu | tvaṃ śaṃkaraḥ somasubhaktibhājāmugrosi rudra tvamabhaktibhājām
You alone are gentle and gracious toward those who walk the path taught by the Veda; but You are fearsome toward those who stray from the Vedic way. You are Śaṅkara to those endowed with pure devotion; but for the devotionless, O Rudra, You are the fierce one.
Unnamed devotee/praiser
Tirtha: Avimukta-Kāśī (Viśveśvara domain)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Diptych-like vision: on one side Śiva as gentle Śaṅkara blessing Veda-following devotees; on the other, Śiva as Bhīma-Rudra confronting those who reject dharma, with contrasting light and posture.
FAQs
The same Lord appears as benevolent to the devoted and Veda-aligned, and as fierce corrective power to those who reject dharma and devotion.
Kāśī is the overarching sacred geography, but this verse is primarily doctrinal (forms of Śiva in relation to dharma and bhakti).
Implicitly, it commends śruti-mārga (Vedic dharma) and bhakti; no explicit vrata or tīrtha-rite is stated.