Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 54
अकामो वा सकामो वा तिर्यग्योनिगतोपि वा । रुद्रस्थल्यां त्यजन्प्राणान्परं निर्वाणमाप्नुयात्
akāmo vā sakāmo vā tiryagyonigatopi vā | rudrasthalyāṃ tyajanprāṇānparaṃ nirvāṇamāpnuyāt
નિષ્કામ હોય કે સકામ, તિર્યક્-યોનિમાં જન્મેલો હોય તોય—રુદ્રસ્થળીમાં પ્રાણ ત્યજનાર પરમ નિર્વાણ પામે છે।
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Rudrasthalī
Type: kshetra
Scene: A compassionate scene of prāṇa departing within Rudrasthalī: a dying being (human or animal) lies peacefully; subtle Śiva presence bestows liberation; attendants chant softly; the soul depicted as a luminous thread rising into stillness.
FAQs
Kāśī’s salvific promise is presented as unconditional: liberation depends on the sanctity of place and divine grace, not merely personal qualification.
Rudrasthalī in Kāśī.
No formal ritual is prescribed; the verse emphasizes prāṇa-tyāga (death) within the sacred boundary as spiritually decisive.