Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 55
तीर्थे तपस्युपकृतौ सदाचारादिकर्मणि । फलाभिलाषिणीबुद्धिर्न येषां ते जना अमी
tīrthe tapasyupakṛtau sadācārādikarmaṇi | phalābhilāṣiṇībuddhirna yeṣāṃ te janā amī
तीर्थकर्म, तपस्या व सदाचारादी कर्तव्यांत ज्यांची बुद्धी फळाची अपेक्षा करीत नाही, तेच खरे श्रेष्ठ व आदर्श जन होत।
Skanda
Listener: Śaunaka and sages (typical frame; not stated in verse)
Scene: A serene group of pilgrims and ascetics at a riverbank tīrtha, performing simple duties—bathing, japa, and service—without display; a calm, luminous atmosphere suggesting inner detachment.
FAQs
True holiness is desireless dharma—performing tīrtha-acts, tapas, and good conduct without craving results.
Tīrtha in general is praised here as a setting for pure, non-commercial spirituality within the Kāśī-māhātmya context.
A general prescription: perform tīrtha-related acts, austerities, and sadācāra without fruit-seeking intention.