Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 62
धूः स्वयं चापि गायत्री रज्जवस्तक्षकादयः । सारथिः प्रणवो यत्र क्रेंकारः प्रणवध्वनिः
dhūḥ svayaṃ cāpi gāyatrī rajjavastakṣakādayaḥ | sārathiḥ praṇavo yatra kreṃkāraḥ praṇavadhvaniḥ
वहाँ धूः स्वयं तथा गायत्री भी उपस्थित थीं। लगामें तक्षक आदि नाग थे; सारथि स्वयं प्रणव (ॐ) था, और प्रणव-ध्वनि ‘क्रें’ मन्त्ररूप से गूँज रही थी।
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa context commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Scene: A divine chariot where Dhūḥ and Gāyatrī appear as personified goddesses; serpent-kings like Takṣaka form living reins; the charioteer is a luminous Oṁ-personification; the air vibrates with the bīja-sound ‘kreṃ’ as visible sound-waves.
FAQs
The Devi’s journey is framed as mantra-filled and Vedic—Gāyatrī and Oṁ signify that sacred sound itself guides and protects.
The Kāśī-khaṇḍa’s sacred geography underlies the narration, but this verse focuses on mantra-symbolism rather than a named tirtha.
Implicitly, reverence for Praṇava (Oṁ) and Gāyatrī-japa is suggested by the imagery, but no explicit rite is prescribed.