Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 41
कलेवरं पूतिगंधि सदैवाशुचिभाजनम् । सुतीर्थपुण्य पण्येन सम्यग्विनिमितं त्वया
kalevaraṃ pūtigaṃdhi sadaivāśucibhājanam | sutīrthapuṇya paṇyena samyagvinimitaṃ tvayā
இந்த உடல் துர்நாற்றமுடையது, எப்போதும் அசுத்தத்தின் பாத்திரம்; உத்தம தீர்த்தப் புண்ணியமெனும் விலையால் நீ இதை முறையாக மறுவடிவாக்கினாய்।
Dharmarāja (Yama)
Tirtha: Kāśī-tīrthas (Gaṅgā-ghāṭas)
Type: ghat
Listener: Śaunaka and ṛṣis (frame)
Scene: A pilgrim at a Gaṅgā-ghāṭa in Kāśī, body shown as shadowy/impure while a luminous stream of tīrtha-puṇya ‘recasts’ him into a radiant form; priests, lamps, and the river as purifier.
FAQs
Pilgrimage-merit is treated as true wealth—capable of reforming one’s life despite the body’s inherent impurity.
The verse speaks generally of “su-tīrthas,” within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s Kāśī-centered sacred landscape.
Implied is tīrtha-sevā such as bathing, worship, and dharmic conduct at holy sites to accrue puṇya.