Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 22
प्रभूरुष्टोपि सद्भृत्ये जीविकामात्रहारकः । काशीहरेत्कराद्भ्रष्टा पुरुषार्थचतुष्टयम्
prabhūruṣṭopi sadbhṛtye jīvikāmātrahārakaḥ | kāśīharetkarādbhraṣṭā puruṣārthacatuṣṭayam
Sekalipun tuan murka kepada pelayan yang baik, ia hanya merampas nafkah semata. Namun bila seseorang tergelincir dari Kāśī, Kāśī sendiri merenggut dari tangannya empat tujuan manusia—dharma, artha, kāma, dan mokṣa.
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta-kṣetra)
Type: kshetra
Listener: null
Scene: A moral tableau: a worldly master angrily dismisses a loyal servant (taking only wages), contrasted with the cosmic personification of Kāśī withdrawing the four puruṣārthas from a heedless pilgrim’s hands; the city’s ghāṭs and Viśveśvara’s aura loom behind.
FAQs
Kāśī is depicted as the support of all four aims of life; abandoning it is portrayed as forfeiting comprehensive human flourishing, culminating in mokṣa.
Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), praised as the giver and guardian of the four puruṣārthas.
No direct rite is prescribed; the verse gives a strong exhortation to remain devoted to Kāśī.