Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 70
प्रयत्नेन खनन्यद्वद्भूमेर्वार्यधिगच्छति । शुश्रूषया गुरोस्तद्वद्विद्या शिष्योधिगच्छति
prayatnena khananyadvadbhūmervāryadhigacchati | śuśrūṣayā gurostadvadvidyā śiṣyodhigacchati
Así como con diligente excavación se alcanza el agua oculta en la tierra, así también, mediante el servicio devoto al gurú, el discípulo obtiene el verdadero conocimiento.
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Scene: A disciple digs a well in parable-form while, in the main scene, he sits near a guru in Kāśī, offering water and listening; the hidden water becomes a luminous stream symbolizing vidyā.
FAQs
Knowledge arises through sustained effort and reverent service; guru-sevā is presented as the direct means to vidyā.
The instruction is situated in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s Kāśī setting, where right conduct supports the pilgrimage-spirit of Varanasi.
The ‘prescription’ is disciplined practice: śuśrūṣā (attentive service) to the guru as a formal dharmic discipline for students.