Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 84
वैष्णव्या मायया विश्वं भ्राम्येतात्र ययाखिलम् । ध्रुवं मूर्तिमती सैषा काशी विश्वैकमोहिनी
vaiṣṇavyā māyayā viśvaṃ bhrāmyetātra yayākhilam | dhruvaṃ mūrtimatī saiṣā kāśī viśvaikamohinī
ด้วยไวษณวีมายา—ซึ่งทำให้สรรพจักรวาลพเนจรหลงวน—โลกนี้จึงหลงมัวเมาที่นี่ แท้จริงมายานั้นเองได้ปรากฏเป็นรูปเป็นกาศี ผู้ล่อลวงเอกแห่งสากลจักรวาล
Skanda (contextual continuation)
Tirtha: Kāśī as Viśvaika-mohinī (unique enchantress)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Kāśī appears as a radiant feminine personification of Vaiṣṇavī Māyā standing over a miniature cosmos of wandering beings; simultaneously, Śiva’s presence is implied as the stabilizing axis—temples and ghāṭas form her jeweled body, Gaṅgā as her flowing veil.
FAQs
Kāśī is portrayed as a mysterious divine power: the same force that deludes the world can, in the sacred kṣetra, be recognized and transcended.
Kāśī itself, elevated from a city to an embodied cosmic principle within the Purāṇic sacred geography.
No direct ritual is given; the verse provides a theological interpretation of Kāśī’s unique power.