Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 41
जाने विघ्नानसंख्यातान्विनिहंतुमनेकधा । क्षेत्रस्यास्य महाभाग नानारूपैरिहस्थितः
jāne vighnānasaṃkhyātānvinihaṃtumanekadhā | kṣetrasyāsya mahābhāga nānārūpairihasthitaḥ
हे महाभाग! असंख्य विघ्ने मला ज्ञात आहेत; या पवित्र क्षेत्राच्या (काशीच्या) हितार्थ ती नानाविध रीतीने नष्ट करण्यासाठी मी येथे अनेक रूपांनी स्थित आहे.
Gaṇeśa (Dhūṇḍhirāja), as praised/described within the Kāśī-khaṇḍa dialogue (Skanda-to-Agastya context)
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (general protective mahatmya)
Type: kshetra
Listener: A addressed 'mahābhāga' interlocutor; devas are also invited to listen
Scene: A protective deity speaks within Kāśī, declaring knowledge of innumerable vighnas and his many stationed forms guarding the kṣetra; the city’s ghāṭas and temples appear as a sacred mandala under watch.
FAQs
In a holy kṣetra like Kāśī, divine presence actively removes impediments for sincere seekers.
Kāśī Kṣetra (Vārāṇasī) as the sacred field protected by divine forces.
No specific rite is prescribed here; the verse establishes Gaṇeśa’s protective, obstacle-removing role in the kṣetra.