Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 72
विपन्नानां च जंतूनां दातुं नैःश्रेयसीं श्रियम् । सर्वेषामिह संस्थानां क्षेत्रं चैवाभिरक्षितुम्
vipannānāṃ ca jaṃtūnāṃ dātuṃ naiḥśreyasīṃ śriyam | sarveṣāmiha saṃsthānāṃ kṣetraṃ caivābhirakṣitum
Untuk menganugerahkan kepada makhluk yang ditimpa kesusahan naiḥśreyasī śrī—kemuliaan sejahtera yang membawa kepada pembebasan—serta untuk melindungi kṣetra suci ini bagi semua yang menetap di sini.
Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)
Tirtha: Avimukta (Kāśī)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis/assembly (typical frame; not stated in verse)
Scene: Śiva’s protective presence over Kāśī: distressed beings approaching the kṣetra, receiving peace and uplift; the kṣetra depicted as a luminous mandala with ghats and shrines.
FAQs
A true kṣetra exists for upliftment—protecting seekers and granting the highest welfare that culminates in liberation.
The verse praises the protective and liberating function of the Kāśī/Avimukta sacred field in this narrative context.
No explicit rite is given; the emphasis is on the kṣetra’s salvific protection and grace.