Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 24
सौधभित्तिषु दृश्यंते चित्रकृन्निर्मितानि तु । ऋते हरिकथायास्तु नान्या वार्ता निशम्यते
saudhabhittiṣu dṛśyaṃte citrakṛnnirmitāni tu | ṛte harikathāyāstu nānyā vārtā niśamyate
Sur les murs des palais, on voit des peintures réalisées par des artistes; et, hormis le récit de Hari, nulle autre parole ne s’entend.
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (gṛha-sabhā/kathā spaces)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Inside grand Kāśī mansions, artists’ murals depict Hari’s stories; in the same spaces, groups sit listening to narration—no gossip, only Hari-kathā—while lamps glow on painted walls.
FAQs
A society rooted in Hari-kathā transforms aesthetics and conversation into dharma—art and speech become instruments of purification.
The cultural sanctity described belongs to Kāśī’s religious atmosphere, where devotion permeates public and private life.
Not a formal rite; it recommends devotional listening and speaking (śravaṇa-kīrtana) of Hari-kathā as daily discipline.