Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 17
चिंतितार्थप्रदा काचित्काचिज्ज्योतिः कलावती । इत्यादि वेषभाषाभिरनुकृत्य समंततः
ciṃtitārthapradā kācitkācijjyotiḥ kalāvatī | ityādi veṣabhāṣābhiranukṛtya samaṃtataḥ
ಆ ಯೋಗಿನಿಯರಲ್ಲಿ ಕೆಲವರು ‘ಚಿಂತಿತಾರ್ಥಪ್ರದಾ’, ಕೆಲವರು ‘ಜ್ಯೋತಿ’, ಮತ್ತ ಕೆಲವರು ‘ಕಲಾವತಿ’ ಎಂಬ ರೂಪಗಳನ್ನು ಧರಿಸಿದರು. ನಾನಾವೇಷ-ನಾನಾಭಾಷಾಭಂಗಿಗಳನ್ನು ಅನುಕರಿಸಿ ಅವರು ನಗರದೆಲ್ಲೆಡೆ ಸುತ್ತಾಡಿದರು.
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and the Naimiṣāraṇya sages (typical frame)
Scene: A ring of yoginīs in varied disguises—some luminous, some graceful, some boon-giving—circling lanes and ghāṭa-approaches of Kāśī, blending into crowds while their eyes gleam with otherworldly power.
FAQs
Kāśī is portrayed as a living sacred field where divine forces move unseen; spiritual reality is not limited to outward appearances.
Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), celebrated as a uniquely protected and spiritually charged city.
None explicitly; the verse focuses on the Yoginīs’ disguises and movement through the city.