Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 21
सत्यमस्खलितं कच्चिदस्ति त्रैलोक्यमंडपे । तीर्थावरोधो न क्वापि केनचित्क्रियते विधे
satyamaskhalitaṃ kaccidasti trailokyamaṃḍape | tīrthāvarodho na kvāpi kenacitkriyate vidhe
اے ودھی (برہما)! کیا تینوں لوکوں کے منڈپ میں سچ اٹل اور بے لغزش قائم ہے؟ اور کیا کہیں بھی کسی کے ہاتھوں تیرتھوں کی راہ میں کوئی رکاوٹ نہیں ڈالی جاتی؟
Śiva (Śambhu)
Tirtha: All tīrthas (universal principle) / Kāśī (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ṛṣis (frame; not explicit in verse)
Scene: Śiva addressing Brahmā in a vast celestial pavilion; below, symbolic rivers and tīrthas flow unobstructed; a contrast vignette could show barriers dissolving under dharma’s command.
FAQs
Truth and access to tīrthas are pillars of dharma; safeguarding sacred places preserves spiritual welfare for all beings.
Tīrthas in general are defended; within Kāśīkhaṇḍa the overarching sacred geography is Kāśī, the supreme tīrtha.
No direct ritual; the implied dharmic injunction is to prevent obstruction of pilgrimage and sacred rites at tīrthas.