Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 76
पयोपि यत्रत्यमचिंत्यवैभवं दिविस्थिता साधुसुधाप्यतोमुधा । तथा प्रसूतेस्तु पयोधरे पयो न पीयते पीतमिदं यदि क्वचित्
payopi yatratyamaciṃtyavaibhavaṃ divisthitā sādhusudhāpyatomudhā | tathā prasūtestu payodhare payo na pīyate pītamidaṃ yadi kvacit
แม้ ‘น้ำนม’ ณ ที่นี้ก็มีมหิทธิคุณอันเกินคะเน ฉะนั้นสุธาอมฤตในสวรรค์เมื่อเทียบแล้วก็ประหนึ่งไร้ค่า ดังน้ำนมในถันมารดาผู้ให้นม ย่อมไม่ถูกดื่มอีกเมื่อได้ลิ้มรสน้ำนี้—หากเคยลิ้มเลยก็ตาม
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī / Avimukta-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Scene: A symbolic scene: a luminous stream of ‘milk-like’ spiritual radiance flowing through Kāśī’s ghats; devas in the sky hold amṛta vessels that appear dim; a mother’s breast-milk metaphor appears as a gentle vignette showing ‘after tasting the higher, the lower is not sought’.
FAQs
The spiritual ‘taste’ of Kāśī surpasses even heavenly delights; worldly and celestial pleasures pale after it.
Kāśī as the supreme sacred realm whose joy eclipses svarga’s nectar.
None; the verse offers a praise-metaphor to communicate Kāśī’s unsurpassed spiritual excellence.