Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 23
ते प्रवेशं प्रयच्छंति नान्येषां हि कदाचन । इत्यर्थे कथयिष्येऽहमितिहासं पुरातनम् । आश्चर्यकारिपरमं काशीभक्तिप्रवर्धनम्
te praveśaṃ prayacchaṃti nānyeṣāṃ hi kadācana | ityarthe kathayiṣye'hamitihāsaṃ purātanam | āścaryakāriparamaṃ kāśībhaktipravardhanam
وہی لوگ داخلہ دیتے ہیں، اور کبھی کسی اور کو نہیں۔ اس معنی کی وضاحت کے لیے میں ایک قدیم حکایت سناؤں گا، نہایت عجیب، جو کاشی کی بھکتی بڑھاتی ہے۔
Skanda (contextual, Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration)
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)
Type: kshetra
Scene: A narrator prepares to unfold an ancient wondrous tale: a sage-like figure addressing attentive listeners, with Kāśī’s skyline—temple spires and the Gaṅgā—evoked in the background, suggesting that the story itself is a gateway to devotion.
FAQs
True entry into the liberating kṣetra is not merely physical—it is governed by worthiness, guardianship, and grace that deepen bhakti.
Kāśī-kṣetra as a whole, presented as a place whose very stories intensify devotion.
None; the verse introduces an exemplary sacred narrative (itihāsa) as a devotional and instructive means.