Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 35
स्वमौलौ स्वतनौ वापि यः पश्येत्स्वप्नगो नरः । तृणानि शुष्ककाष्ठानि षष्ठे मासि न तिष्ठति
svamaulau svatanau vāpi yaḥ paśyetsvapnago naraḥ | tṛṇāni śuṣkakāṣṭhāni ṣaṣṭhe māsi na tiṣṭhati
اگر کوئی آدمی خواب میں اپنے سر پر یا اپنے ہی بدن پر گھاس اور خشک لکڑی کے ٹکڑے دیکھے تو وہ چھٹے مہینے تک زندہ نہیں رہتا؛ یہ موت کی علامت ہے۔
Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Listener: Pilgrimage-inquirer within the Kāśī-mahātmya dialogue frame
Scene: A sleeping pilgrim sees in dream dry grass and brittle firewood resting on his own head/body—symbols of funeral fuel and impending cremation—while Kāśī’s ghāṭs and a distant liṅga silhouette loom as a reminder of mokṣa.
FAQs
Recognizing life’s uncertainty, one should turn quickly toward dharma and refuge in Śiva at Kāśī rather than delaying spiritual practice.
The wider passage belongs to Kāśīkhaṇḍa, oriented toward Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) and Viśveśvara as the ultimate refuge beyond Yama’s fear.
No direct ritual is prescribed in this verse; it functions as a warning-sign (kālacihna) prompting immediate sādhana and seeking Kāśī/Viśveśvara.