Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 41
यदा प्रभृति सा गौरी निर्गता मम सद्मतः । मन्ये मेने तदारभ्य पद्मसद्मा विनिर्ययौ
yadā prabhṛti sā gaurī nirgatā mama sadmataḥ | manye mene tadārabhya padmasadmā viniryayau
Dès l’instant où Gaurī quitta ma demeure, j’ai senti que, depuis lors, la demeure de lotus de mon cœur et de ma félicité s’en était elle aussi allée, vidée par son absence.
Skanda (contextual attribution: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Agastya
Scene: Śiva in a quiet inner chamber, the heart-lotus motif suggested by a lotus throne left vacant; the atmosphere is dim, with a sense of emptiness after Gaurī’s departure.
FAQs
It portrays viraha (holy separation) as a purifier of devotion—love for the Divine becomes most intense when one feels the pain of distance.
The broader setting is Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) in the Kāśī-khaṇḍa, though this verse itself focuses on devotional emotion rather than naming a specific tīrtha.
No explicit ritual is prescribed in this verse; it is a narrative-psychological reflection on separation from Gaurī.