Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 93
काशिवासिनिजने वनेचरेद्वित्रिभुज्यपि समीरभोजने । स्वैरचारिणि जितेंद्रियेप्यहो काशिवासिनि जने विशिष्टता
kāśivāsinijane vanecaredvitribhujyapi samīrabhojane | svairacāriṇi jiteṃdriyepyaho kāśivāsini jane viśiṣṭatā
Même si celui qui demeure à Kāśī vit tel un rôdeur des forêts—ne mangeant qu’une, deux ou trois fois, comme s’il n’était soutenu que par l’air—et même s’il va librement, ayant dompté les sens, ah ! une excellence unique appartient aux habitants de Kāśī.
Skanda (deduced from Kāśīkhaṇḍa context: Skanda instructing Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī / Avimukta
Type: kshetra
Listener: Sages / audience evaluating the hierarchy of sādhana (tapas vs kṣetra)
Scene: An ascetic-like Kāśī resident—simple cloth, begging bowl—walks freely along the ghāṭs; beside him, a forest hermit practicing severe austerity; a subtle aura uniquely surrounds the Kāśī-vāsin, indicating ‘viśiṣṭatā’ granted by the city itself.
FAQs
The verse proclaims the singular spiritual distinction of dwelling in Kāśī—its sanctity is so exceptional that even severe ascetic traits are spoken of in relation to Kāśī’s residents as a mark of unique blessedness.
Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), celebrated in the Skanda Purāṇa’s Kāśīkhaṇḍa as an unsurpassed sacred abode (sthāna-māhātmya).
No specific rite (snāna, dāna, japa) is prescribed here; the verse highlights austerity and restraint (limited eating, sense-control) while emphasizing the overarching greatness of Kāśīvāsa (dwelling in Kāśī).