Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 95
ततः शशाप तं बाला प्रबला तपसो बलात् । जडोसि नितरां यस्माज्जलाधारो नदो भव
tataḥ śaśāpa taṃ bālā prabalā tapaso balāt | jaḍosi nitarāṃ yasmājjalādhāro nado bhava
แล้วนางพรหมจารีผู้ทรงฤทธิ์ด้วยกำลังตบะได้สาปเขาว่า: “เพราะเจ้าทึบเขลายิ่งนัก จงเป็นแม่น้ำ เป็นเพียงผู้รองรับน้ำเท่านั้น”
Narrator (contextual); the curse is spoken by the maiden
Scene: A tapasvin maiden, radiant with ascetic power, raises her hand in a curse; before her stands the accused figure, shown beginning to dissolve into a flowing watercourse—an origin-moment of a river within Kāśī’s sacred landscape.
FAQs
Austerity (tapas) carries moral force; speech used in anger can reshape destiny, so restraint and discernment are part of dharma.
The narrative belongs to Kāśī’s Avimukta-mahākṣetra context, where sacred rivers and tīrthas arise through divine causality.
None directly; the verse sets up the origin-story that later supports tīrtha-related practices.