Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 38
अवाप्य काशीं दुष्प्रापां को जहाति सचेतनः । रत्नं करस्थमुत्सृज्य कः काचं संजिघृक्षति
avāpya kāśīṃ duṣprāpāṃ ko jahāti sacetanaḥ | ratnaṃ karasthamutsṛjya kaḥ kācaṃ saṃjighṛkṣati
Tendo alcançado Kāśī, tão difícil de obter, que pessoa sensata a abandonaria? Quem, lançando fora uma joia já na mão, desejaria apanhar mero vidro?
Skanda (deduced, Kāśī-khaṇḍa norm: Skanda to Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Pilgrimage-seeking audience within the frame dialogue (commonly sages/Śaunaka-group in Purāṇic settings)
Scene: A pilgrim stands at the Gaṅgā-ghāṭa of Kāśī holding a radiant jewel in his palm while a dull shard of glass lies discarded; behind him rise temple spires and the glow of Viśveśvara’s presence.
FAQs
Kāśī is a supreme spiritual opportunity; abandoning it for lesser goals is portrayed as choosing glass over a jewel.
Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) is directly praised as duṣprāpā—rarely attained and of incomparable worth.
No explicit ritual; the implied counsel is to remain devoted to Kāśī and not forsake its spiritual path.