Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 16
आचारमेव प्रथमं तस्मादाचक्ष्व षण्मुख । देवदेवो यथा प्राह तवाग्रे त्वं तथा वद
ācārameva prathamaṃ tasmādācakṣva ṣaṇmukha | devadevo yathā prāha tavāgre tvaṃ tathā vada
C’est pourquoi, d’abord, expose la conduite droite, ô Ṣaṇmukha. Parle-moi exactement comme le Dieu des dieux parla jadis en ta présence ; de même, toi, dis-le.
Agastya (deduced; requesting Skanda to narrate what Śiva taught)
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Skanda (Ṣaṇmukha)
Scene: The interlocutor requests Skanda to explain ācāra first, and to speak exactly as Śiva once spoke before Skanda—evoking a sacred classroom of divine lineage.
FAQs
Dharma is to be learned through authentic transmission—Skanda is asked to repeat Śiva’s authoritative instruction on ācāra.
Kāśī, as the setting of the Kāśīkhaṇḍa discourse where Śiva’s dharma is applied to the mokṣa-kṣetra.
The requested ‘first teaching’ is ācāra (right conduct), positioned as foundational before other practices.