Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 71
वाराणसीह करुणामयदिव्यमूर्तिरुत्सृज्य यत्र तु तनुं तनुभृत्सुखेन । विश्वेशदृङ्महसि यत्सहसा प्रविश्य रूपेण तां वितनुतां पदवीं दधाति
vārāṇasīha karuṇāmayadivyamūrtirutsṛjya yatra tu tanuṃ tanubhṛtsukhena | viśveśadṛṅmahasi yatsahasā praviśya rūpeṇa tāṃ vitanutāṃ padavīṃ dadhāti
ここヴァーラーナシーにおいて、慈悲に満ちた神聖なる臨在は――衆生が安らかに身を捨てうるところ――忽ちヴィシュヴェーシャの眼差しの光輝へと入り、新たな姿によって、その広大にして崇高なる境地を得る。
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī / Vārāṇasī (mokṣa-kṣetra)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Mahāmuni
Scene: A dying devotee on the ghats, serene and unafraid; above, Viśveśvara’s eyes emit a column of light that receives the subtle form, which blossoms into a luminous, expanded state.
FAQs
Vārāṇasī is portrayed as a uniquely grace-filled place where liberation is facilitated through Viśveśvara’s direct divine agency.
Vārāṇasī (Kāśī), as the kṣetra where leaving the body is said to become spiritually efficacious.
None; the verse highlights salvific grace associated with the place and Viśveśvara rather than a specific ritual.