Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 63
मायां चापि गृहाणेमां दुष्प्रणोद्यां सुरासुरैः । यया संमोहितं विश्वमकिंचिज्ज्ञं भविष्यति
māyāṃ cāpi gṛhāṇemāṃ duṣpraṇodyāṃ surāsuraiḥ | yayā saṃmohitaṃ viśvamakiṃcijjñaṃ bhaviṣyati
Terimalah juga Māyā ini—yang sukar disingkirkan bahkan oleh para dewa dan asura—dengannya seluruh alam terpesona, seolah-olah tidak mengetahui apa-apa.
Śiva (Hara)
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and other Ṛṣis (contextual)
Scene: Viṣṇu receives a dark-blue, shimmering veil labeled Māyā from the speaker; behind it, the world appears as dreamlike silhouettes—gods, demons, humans—wandering in confusion, eyes half-closed, while a thin ray of knowledge pierces the veil.
FAQs
Māyā is a profound force of delusion; liberation requires divine grace and true knowledge that transcends it.
The Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s wider narrative glorifies Kāśī as a place associated with overcoming bondage and attaining nirvāṇa.
None directly; it is doctrinal, describing māyā as the cause of worldly bewilderment.