Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 86
नोप्तो बलिर्न बत कासु च देवता सुतीर्थानि कानि न मयाध्युषितानि वत्स । के के मया न नियमौषधमंत्रयंत्राः संसाधितास्तव कृते सुकृतैकलभ्य
nopto balirna bata kāsu ca devatā sutīrthāni kāni na mayādhyuṣitāni vatsa | ke ke mayā na niyamauṣadhamaṃtrayaṃtrāḥ saṃsādhitāstava kṛte sukṛtaikalabhya
«Assurément, nulle offrande ne fut laissée de côté ; et à quelles divinités n’ai-je pas supplié ? Quels gués sacrés n’ai-je pas fréquentés, mon enfant ? Quels vœux, remèdes, mantras et instruments rituels n’ai-je pas accomplis pour toi, ô toi qu’on n’obtient que par des mérites amassés ?»
A grieving mother (narrative voice within Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)
Tirtha: Kāśī (as umbrella for ‘su-tīrthāni’)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A devotee-parent recounts offerings, deity-supplications, and residence at sacred fords; ritual paraphernalia—mantra scrolls, yantras, herbs—surround the figure, yet grief remains.
FAQs
Even extensive ritual effort cannot fully control fate; merit and divine will operate beyond human grasp, urging surrender and right understanding of dharma.
Tīrthas are referenced generically; the overarching Kāśī Khaṇḍa frames Kāśī as the supreme tīrtha among tīrthas.
General observances are listed—bali (offerings), niyama (vows), mantras, and yantras—without specifying a single named rite.