Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 42
कुशस्थली यथा काशी शूलपाणिश्च भैरवः । यथा वै मुक्तिदो राम धर्मारण्यं तथोत्तमम्
kuśasthalī yathā kāśī śūlapāṇiśca bhairavaḥ | yathā vai muktido rāma dharmāraṇyaṃ tathottamam
குஷஸ்தலி காசியைப் போலவும், சூலபாணி அங்கே பைரவனாகவும் இருப்பதுபோல; அந்தத் தீர்த்தம் உண்மையிலேயே முக்தி அளிப்பதுபோல—அவ்வாறே, ஓ ராமா, தர்மாரண்யம் மிகச் சிறந்தது।
Vasiṣṭha (deduced from context of instruction to Rāma)
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya
Type: kshetra
Listener: Rāma
Scene: A hymn-like tableau: Dharmāraṇya visualized as a forest-kshetra with a shrine of Śūlapāṇi-Bhairava guarding the sacred precinct; the aura evokes Kāśī—liberation, lamps, and solemn guardianship.
FAQs
The Purāṇas establish hierarchies of sacred places to inspire pilgrimage; Dharmāraṇya is praised as mokṣa-bestowing like Kāśī.
Dharmāraṇya, explicitly compared with Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) and Kuśasthalī.
No specific rite is prescribed here; the verse functions as a māhātmya statement asserting the site’s liberating potency.