Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 3
निर्दग्धान्सागराञ्छ्रुत्वा कपिलक्रोधवह्निना । अश्वमेधाश्वसंयुक्तान्पूर्वजान्स्वान्भगीरथः
nirdagdhānsāgarāñchrutvā kapilakrodhavahninā | aśvamedhāśvasaṃyuktānpūrvajānsvānbhagīrathaḥ
கபிலரின் கோபத் தீயால் எரிந்த—அசுவமேத யாகக் குதிரையுடன் தொடர்புடைய—தன் முன்னோர்களான சாகரர்களின் செய்தியைக் கேட்டு பகீரதன் அவர்களை மீட்கத் தீர்மானித்தான்।
Īśvara (Śiva) (continuing speech in Adhyāya 27 context)
Tirtha: Gaṅgā (Tri-path river) as the implied remedy; antecedent episode at Kapila-āśrama
Type: kshetra
Listener: Viṣṇu
Scene: Bhagīratha hears the grievous news: his ancestors, the Sāgaras, burned by Kapila’s wrathful fire while connected to the Aśvamedha horse; the moment crystallizes into a vow of deliverance.
FAQs
Ancestral responsibility and dharma motivate Bhagīratha’s famed effort, setting the stage for Gaṅgā’s salvific role.
No single Kāśī site is named in this verse; it introduces the Bhagīratha–Gaṅgā episode that underlies Gaṅgā’s sanctity (central to Kāśī).
It references the Aśvamedha context; no direct prescription is given in this verse.