Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 38
चित्तमंतर्गतं दुष्टं तीर्थस्नानान्न शुद्ध्यति । शतशोथ जलैर्धौतं सुराभांडमिवाशुचि
cittamaṃtargataṃ duṣṭaṃ tīrthasnānānna śuddhyati | śataśotha jalairdhautaṃ surābhāṃḍamivāśuci
جو چِتّ اندر سے فاسد ہو وہ تیرتھ میں اشنان سے پاک نہیں ہوتا؛ جیسے شراب کا برتن سینکڑوں بار پانی سے دھویا جائے تب بھی ناپاک رہتا ہے۔
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī-tīrthas (general)
Type: ghat
Scene: At a tīrtha-ghāṭa, a person repeatedly pours water over a stained vessel; the stain remains. Beside it, a heart-mind symbol is darkened; a sage points inward, indicating the true cleansing is internal.
FAQs
Outer rites cannot cleanse a corrupted heart; inner reform is essential for purification.
Tīrthas in general are referenced; in Kāśīkhaṇḍa the statement safeguards Kāśī’s sanctity by insisting on inner readiness.
The verse critiques reliance on snāna alone and implies the need for repentance, restraint, and purification of intention.