Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 90
मुक्तिक्षेत्राणि सर्वाणि यत्संसेव्योदितं फलम् । पंचरात्रात्तदत्रास्तु निषेव्य मणिकर्णिकाम्
muktikṣetrāṇi sarvāṇi yatsaṃsevyoditaṃ phalam | paṃcarātrāttadatrāstu niṣevya maṇikarṇikām
सर्वेषु मुक्तिक्षेत्रेषु संसेव्यात् यदुदितं फलम्, तत् अत्र पञ्चरात्रात् मणिकर्णिकां निषेव्य लभ्यताम्।
Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)
Tirtha: Maṇikarṇikā
Type: ghat
Scene: Night at Maṇikarṇikā: lamps flicker along the ghat, the Gaṅgā flows dark and luminous, pilgrims sit in meditation while funeral fires glow in the distance; a Śiva-liṅga shrine stands nearby, suggesting liberation through Śiva’s grace.
FAQs
Maṇikarṇikā in Kāśī is exalted as a concentrated gateway to liberation, surpassing many pilgrimage circuits.
Maṇikarṇikā (the famed tīrtha/ghāṭ of Kāśī) is explicitly praised.
Devoted resort to Maṇikarṇikā for five nights (pañca-rātra) is recommended.