Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 5
कल्पायुषो वसंत्यत्र तपसा धूतकल्मषाः । विष्णुस्मरण संक्षीण समस्तक्लेशसंचयाः
kalpāyuṣo vasaṃtyatra tapasā dhūtakalmaṣāḥ | viṣṇusmaraṇa saṃkṣīṇa samastakleśasaṃcayāḥ
یہاں وہ لوگ رہتے ہیں جن کی عمر ایک کَلپ تک ہوتی ہے؛ تپسیا سے اُن کے گناہوں کی میل دھل چکی ہے، اور وِشنو کے سمرن سے اُن کے تمام دکھ اور کَلَیش کا ذخیرہ مٹ گیا ہے۔
Two gaṇas (divine attendants)
Scene: A vision of Maharloka’s residents: serene ascetics and luminous beings, long-lived, engaged in tapas and constant remembrance of Viṣṇu; the atmosphere is calm and radiant.
FAQs
Austerity and constant remembrance of God cleanse sin and dissolve suffering; true merit is inner purification, not merely residence in a higher realm.
The verse describes Maharloka’s sanctity; the broader Kāśī Khaṇḍa context links such merit to sacred living and pilgrimage ethos, though no specific Kāśī-tīrtha is named here.
It highlights tapas (austerity) and viṣṇu-smaraṇa (remembrance of Viṣṇu) as transformative practices.