Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 73
सर्वमंगलमांगल्यो यत्र श्रीमानयं हरिः । स्वयं वै यज्ञपुरुषः स मखः किं श्मशानवत्
sarvamaṃgalamāṃgalyo yatra śrīmānayaṃ hariḥ | svayaṃ vai yajñapuruṣaḥ sa makhaḥ kiṃ śmaśānavat
“സകല മംഗളങ്ങളിലും മംഗളനായ ശ്രീമാൻ ഹരി ഇവിടെ സ്വയം സന്നിഹിതനാണ്—അവൻ തന്നെയാണ് യജ്ഞപുരുഷൻ—അങ്ങനെയുള്ള യാഗം ശ്മശാനത്തെപ്പോലെ എങ്ങനെ ആകും?”
Dakṣa
Listener: Ṛṣis (frame audience)
Scene: A theological assertion in the midst of conflict: Hari is present as Yajña-Puruṣa, making the sacrifice supremely auspicious—contrasted against the ‘cremation-ground’ metaphor.
FAQs
Dakṣa argues that divine presence makes ritual auspicious; the broader narrative tests whether ritual is complete without honoring the supreme Lord appropriately.
The verse belongs to the Kāśī Khaṇḍa framework but focuses on yajña-theology rather than a named sacred spot in Vārāṇasī.
It asserts the doctrinal basis for yajña: Hari as Yajña-Puruṣa—implying that proper invocation of the deity is central to the rite’s auspiciousness.