Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 59
अयमेव परोधर्मस्त्विदमेव परं तपः । इदमेव परं तीर्थं विष्णुपादांबु यत्पिबेत
ayameva parodharmastvidameva paraṃ tapaḥ | idameva paraṃ tīrthaṃ viṣṇupādāṃbu yatpibeta
Ceci seul est le dharma suprême, ceci seul l’austérité la plus haute ; ceci seul est le tīrtha le plus grand : boire l’eau sacrée des pieds de Viṣṇu.
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda to Agastya)
Tirtha: Viṣṇu-pāda-ambu (caraṇāmṛta / pāda-tīrtha)
Type: kund
Scene: A priest offers caraṇāmṛta (water sanctified by washing the Lord’s feet) to a devotee; the devotee drinks with folded hands; above, Viṣṇu’s feet shine, and a stream suggests Gaṅgā-like sanctity.
FAQs
Devotional sanctity (caraṇāmṛta) is elevated above external religiosity, presented as the essence of dharma, tapas, and tīrtha.
The ‘tīrtha’ is defined devotionally as Viṣṇu’s foot-water (caraṇāmṛta), rather than a named geographic river or shrine.
Pibeta—drink viṣṇu-pādāmbu (caraṇāmṛta), the consecrated water associated with worship of Viṣṇu.