Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 16
त्वमेको जगतां वंद्यो विश्वस्योपरि संस्थितः । अहं त्वदुपरिष्टाच्च स्थितोस्मी ति जितं मया
tvameko jagatāṃ vaṃdyo viśvasyopari saṃsthitaḥ | ahaṃ tvadupariṣṭācca sthitosmī ti jitaṃ mayā
Engkau seorang sahaja yang layak disembah oleh segala alam, tegak di atas seluruh jagat. Namun aku berdiri di atas-Mu, menyangka, ‘Aku telah menang!’
Gajāsura
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Kāśīkhaṇḍa frame audience (not specified in verse)
Scene: Gajāsura confesses his delusion: he had stood ‘above’ Śiva and thought himself victorious; the composition emphasizes verticality—Śiva below steady, demon above yet defeated, illustrating the irony of pride.
FAQs
Ego creates delusion even against the Supreme; confession becomes the doorway to grace and right understanding.
Kāśī’s spiritual frame is implied: in Śiva’s sacred geography, pride is humbled and beings are uplifted toward liberation.
None; it is a moral-theological reflection within the narrative.