Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 45
मा गंगां व्रज कौंतेय मा प्रयागं च पुष्करम् । तत्र गच्छ कुरुश्रेष्ठ यत्र प्राची सरस्वती
mā gaṃgāṃ vraja kauṃteya mā prayāgaṃ ca puṣkaram | tatra gaccha kuruśreṣṭha yatra prācī sarasvatī
கௌந்தேயா, கங்கைக்குச் செல்லாதே; பிரயாகத்திற்கும் புஷ்கரத்திற்கும் செல்லாதே. குருவில் சிறந்தவனே, பிராசீ சரஸ்வதி இருக்கும் இடத்திற்குச் செல்.
Viṣṇu (quoted gāthā, addressed to Dharmaputra/Yudhiṣṭhira)
Tirtha: Prācī Sarasvatī
Type: river
Listener: Dharmaputra (Yudhiṣṭhira; addressed as Kaunteya, Kuruśreṣṭha)
Scene: Viṣṇu instructs Yudhiṣṭhira: a map-like sacred geography implied—Gaṅgā, Prayāga, Puṣkara shown as distant icons, while Prācī Sarasvatī glows as the chosen destination; Yudhiṣṭhira turns toward the west (Prabhāsa).
FAQs
In sacred geography, certain tīrthas are uniquely efficacious; the text directs the seeker to the most spiritually potent site for that context.
Prācī Sarasvatī in the Prabhāsa region.
A pilgrimage instruction is given: go to Prācī Sarasvatī rather than other famous tīrthas.