Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 89
रक्षंति क्षेत्रमेतद्वै तथान्या नवशक्तयः । उपसर्गसहस्रेभ्यस्ता वैदिग्देवताक्रमात्
rakṣaṃti kṣetrametadvai tathānyā navaśaktayaḥ | upasargasahasrebhyastā vaidigdevatākramāt
ಈ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರವನ್ನು ಆ ಇತರ ಒಂಬತ್ತು ಶಕ್ತಿಗಳೂ ರಕ್ಷಿಸುತ್ತವೆ. ದಿಕ್ಕಿನ ದೇವತೆಗಳ ಕ್ರಮಾನುಸಾರವಾಗಿ ಅವು ಸಾವಿರಾರು ಉಪಸರ್ಗಗಳಿಂದ ಇದನ್ನು ಕಾಪಾಡುತ್ತವೆ।
Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context) to Agastya
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (Navāśakti-rakṣā)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A schematic yet sacred vision of Kāśī as a mandala: nine Śaktis stationed at directional points, each radiating protective light, forming a fortress against ‘thousands of calamities’.
FAQs
Sacred geography is presented as a divinely structured mandala where protective powers operate in ordered harmony.
The Kāśī-kṣetra as a protected mandala guarded by Navāśakti and the directional divine order.
Implicitly, honoring the Navāśakti and the kṣetra’s directional divine arrangement as part of devotional practice.