Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 38
चित्तमंतर्गतं दुष्टं तीर्थस्नानान्न शुद्ध्यति । शतशोथ जलैर्धौतं सुराभांडमिवाशुचि
cittamaṃtargataṃ duṣṭaṃ tīrthasnānānna śuddhyati | śataśotha jalairdhautaṃ surābhāṃḍamivāśuci
Una mente corrompida en su interior no se purifica con baños en los tīrthas; como una vasija de licor, que queda impura aunque se lave con agua cientos de veces.
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī-tīrthas (general)
Type: ghat
Scene: At a tīrtha-ghāṭa, a person repeatedly pours water over a stained vessel; the stain remains. Beside it, a heart-mind symbol is darkened; a sage points inward, indicating the true cleansing is internal.
FAQs
Outer rites cannot cleanse a corrupted heart; inner reform is essential for purification.
Tīrthas in general are referenced; in Kāśīkhaṇḍa the statement safeguards Kāśī’s sanctity by insisting on inner readiness.
The verse critiques reliance on snāna alone and implies the need for repentance, restraint, and purification of intention.