Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 44
परिव्यपेतसंतापस्तपनः स्पर्शनाद्विभोः । अवग्रहितसस्यश्रीरुल्ललास यथांबुदात्
parivyapetasaṃtāpastapanaḥ sparśanādvibhoḥ | avagrahitasasyaśrīrullalāsa yathāṃbudāt
വിഭുവിന്റെ സ്പർശത്താൽ തപനന്റെ ദാഹസന്താപം അകന്നു; മേഘവൃഷ്ടിക്കു ശേഷം വിളശ്രീ വിരിയുന്നതുപോലെ സൂര്യൻ ദീപ്തിയായി പ്രകാശിച്ചു।
Narrator (Skanda-to-Agastya context in Kāśī Khaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and sages (frame tradition) / pilgrims (implied)
Scene: Sūrya’s fierce radiance softens as Śiva’s touch dispels the burning; the sky takes on monsoon freshness, and the earth’s crop-prosperity imagery is evoked like fields greening after rain.
FAQs
Divine grace transforms austerity’s strain into radiance and well-being, as rain turns parched fields into abundance.
Kāśī’s Shaiva sacred sphere is the backdrop, emphasizing Śiva as the immediate giver of relief and auspiciousness.
No explicit prescription appears; the emphasis is on the effect of Śiva’s sparśa (touch) and anugraha.