Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 41
जाने विघ्नानसंख्यातान्विनिहंतुमनेकधा । क्षेत्रस्यास्य महाभाग नानारूपैरिहस्थितः
jāne vighnānasaṃkhyātānvinihaṃtumanekadhā | kṣetrasyāsya mahābhāga nānārūpairihasthitaḥ
हे महाभाग! मैं असंख्य विघ्नों को जानता हूँ; इस पवित्र क्षेत्र (काशी) की रक्षा हेतु उन्हें नाना प्रकार से नष्ट करने के लिए मैं यहाँ अनेक रूपों में स्थित हूँ।
Gaṇeśa (Dhūṇḍhirāja), as praised/described within the Kāśī-khaṇḍa dialogue (Skanda-to-Agastya context)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (general protective mahatmya)
Type: kshetra
Listener: A addressed 'mahābhāga' interlocutor; devas are also invited to listen
Scene: A protective deity speaks within Kāśī, declaring knowledge of innumerable vighnas and his many stationed forms guarding the kṣetra; the city’s ghāṭas and temples appear as a sacred mandala under watch.
FAQs
In a holy kṣetra like Kāśī, divine presence actively removes impediments for sincere seekers.
Kāśī Kṣetra (Vārāṇasī) as the sacred field protected by divine forces.
No specific rite is prescribed here; the verse establishes Gaṇeśa’s protective, obstacle-removing role in the kṣetra.