Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 63
ब्राह्मणः क्षत्रियो वैश्यः शूद्रो वा यदि वेतरः । विष्णुभक्ति समायुक्तो ज्ञेयः सर्वोत्तमश्च सः
brāhmaṇaḥ kṣatriyo vaiśyaḥ śūdro vā yadi vetaraḥ | viṣṇubhakti samāyukto jñeyaḥ sarvottamaśca saḥ
ಬ್ರಾಹ್ಮಣನಾಗಲಿ, ಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯನಾಗಲಿ, ವೈಶ್ಯನಾಗಲಿ, ಶೂದ್ರನಾಗಲಿ ಅಥವಾ ಬೇರೆ ಯಾರಾಗಲಿ—ವಿಷ್ಣುಭಕ್ತಿಯಿಂದ ಯುಕ್ತನಾದವನೇ ಎಲ್ಲರಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ಶ್ರೇಷ್ಠನೆಂದು ತಿಳಿಯಬೇಕು।
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda to Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Scene: A mixed group—brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, and others—stand together in devotion before Viṣṇu; the deity’s gaze equalizes all, with a halo encircling the group as one community of bhaktas.
FAQs
Devotion to Viṣṇu is presented as the supreme criterion of spiritual excellence, surpassing social classifications.
No specific site is named; the verse states a general dharmic principle within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa discourse.
No single rite is prescribed; the prescription is to cultivate viṣṇu-bhakti (devotion to Viṣṇu).