Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 9
प्राणितव्येऽत्र को हेतुर्मच्छिशोरुपजंघनेः । क्षेत्राद्बहिरहिर्यं हि दष्टा नैषीत्परासु ताम्
prāṇitavye'tra ko heturmacchiśorupajaṃghaneḥ | kṣetrādbahirahiryaṃ hi daṣṭā naiṣītparāsu tām
“Ano ang dahilan kung bakit nananatili ang buhay dito, kahit ang aking anak na si Upajaṅghani ay nakagat ng ahas sa binti? Sapagkat sa labas ng banal na kṣetra na ito, ang kagat ng ahas ay tiyak na maghahatid sa kanya sa kamatayan.”
Skanda (deduced Kāśīkhaṇḍa narrative voice; describing the muni’s words within the dialogue to Agastya)
Tirtha: Avimukta/Kāśī-kṣetra (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Listener: null
Scene: A worried parent/sage in Kāśī holds or looks at a child bitten on the leg; the kṣetra’s unseen protective aura is implied, with ghāṭa silhouettes and temple spires in the background; a serpent retreats into shadow.
FAQs
The verse highlights the extraordinary protective grace attributed to a sacred kṣetra—within holy space, destiny itself is said to be softened by divine presence.
The wider sanctity of Kāśī-kṣetra is implied—its precinct is portrayed as uniquely protective compared to places outside it.
No explicit ritual is prescribed here; the emphasis is on the kṣetra’s innate spiritual potency.