Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 24
मरणं नाभिकांक्षेद्धि कांक्ष्यो मोक्षोऽपिनो पुनः । शरीरशोषणोपायः कर्तव्यः सुधिया नहि
maraṇaṃ nābhikāṃkṣeddhi kāṃkṣyo mokṣo'pino punaḥ | śarīraśoṣaṇopāyaḥ kartavyaḥ sudhiyā nahi
मरणाची इच्छा करू नये; तसेच लोभाने मोक्षाचीही आकांक्षा करू नये। सुज्ञाने देह शोषविणारे वा देहाला पीडा देणारे उपाय करू नयेत।
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa context, typically Skanda to Agastya)
Tirtha: Avimukta-Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and the Naimiṣāraṇya sages (standard frame)
Scene: A pilgrim in Kāśī sits calmly near a ghat, rejecting harsh ascetic implements; Śiva’s presence is implied as a compassionate guide toward balanced sādhana.
FAQs
Spiritual life in Kāśī is not escapism; avoid craving for death or liberation and avoid harmful austerities.
Kāśī in the broader discourse, where even the pursuit of mokṣa is to be tempered with wisdom.
A prohibition: do not adopt practices aimed at bodily desiccation/torment; cultivate wise restraint instead.