Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 42
न तादृग्धर्मसंभारो लभ्यते क्रतुकोटिभिः । यादृग्वाराणसी वीथी संचारेण पदेपदे
na tādṛgdharmasaṃbhāro labhyate kratukoṭibhiḥ | yādṛgvārāṇasī vīthī saṃcāreṇa padepade
Such an accumulation of dharma is not gained even by crores of Vedic sacrifices, as is gained—step by step—simply by walking along the streets of Vārāṇasī.
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa narrative convention)
Tirtha: Vārāṇasī-vīthayaḥ (streets of Kāśī)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A pilgrim stream moves through narrow Kāśī lanes lined with small shrines and liṅgas; each footstep emits a faint glow of merit; distant yajña fires appear dim in comparison, symbolizing kratu-koṭi surpassed.
FAQs
Sacred geography can surpass ritual magnitude: Kāśī grants extraordinary merit through simple contact and movement within it.
Vārāṇasī itself—especially its vīthīs (lanes/streets) as a sacred field.
Vīthī-saṃcāra—pilgrimage-walking through Vārāṇasī (a form of sacred circumambulation/holy roaming).