Skanda Purana — Vishnu Khanda, Shloka 183
यानि कानि च तीर्थानि भूमौ दिव्यानि सुव्रत । कार्तिक्यां तानि सर्वाणि गोप्रतारे वसन्ति वै
yāni kāni ca tīrthāni bhūmau divyāni suvrata | kārtikyāṃ tāni sarvāṇi gopratāre vasanti vai
हे सुव्रत! भूमीवर जी जी दिव्य तीर्थे आहेत, ती सर्व कार्तिकीमध्ये निश्चयाने गोप्रतारात वास करतात।
Brahmā (deduced)
Tirtha: Gopratāra
Type: ghat
Listener: Suvrata (addressed: ‘O you of excellent vows’)
Scene: A visionary tableau: many personified tīrthas—rivers, lakes, sacred peaks—arrive as luminous beings and take residence at Gopratāra during Kārtikā, surrounding the Sarayū with halos and banners.
FAQs
Kārtika amplifies sacredness; the tīrtha is portrayed as a spiritual ‘confluence’ where the merits of all holy places become accessible.
Gopratāra Tīrtha in Ayodhyā.
Implied Kārtika observance: visiting/bathing at Gopratāra during Kārtikā to gain multi-tīrtha merit.