Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 85
सम्यक्संविद्महे तात धुवस्य न मनीषितम् । पदं परिजिहीर्षुः स कस्यास्मासु महातपाः
samyaksaṃvidmahe tāta dhuvasya na manīṣitam | padaṃ parijihīrṣuḥ sa kasyāsmāsu mahātapāḥ
«Nous ne comprenons pas clairement, vénérable seigneur, l’intention de Dhruva. Ce grand ascète semble résolu à enlever un “pada”, un rang; à lequel d’entre nous veut-il le ravir ?»
Devas
Listener: Dvija
Scene: Devas, uneasy, ask Brahmā whose ‘station’ Dhruva intends to seize; above them a symbolic celestial wheel shows a bright fixed star at the north, while Brahmā listens with calm discernment.
FAQs
Spiritual striving can surpass worldly rank; those attached to status fear what devotion and tapas can legitimately attain.
Kāśī remains the overarching frame in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa, but this line concerns celestial ‘pada’ (status) rather than a pilgrimage location.
No specific rite is prescribed; the verse references tapas as Dhruva’s means and the devas’ concern.