Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 1
गणावूचतुः । शिवशर्मन्नुदर्कं ते कथयावो निशामय । त्वमत्र वैष्णवे लोके भुक्त्वा भोगान्सुपुष्कलान्
gaṇāvūcatuḥ | śivaśarmannudarkaṃ te kathayāvo niśāmaya | tvamatra vaiṣṇave loke bhuktvā bhogānsupuṣkalān
Các gaṇa thưa rằng: “Hỡi Śivaśarman, xin lắng nghe—chúng tôi sẽ nói về lộ trình tương lai của ngài. Tại đây, trong cõi Vaiṣṇava, ngài sẽ thọ hưởng những lạc thú dồi dào.”
Gaṇas (attendants) speaking to Śivaśarman
Tirtha: Kāśī (implied as the merit-source)
Type: kshetra
Listener: audience of the māhātmya; within story: Śivaśarman is addressed
Scene: Two gaṇas address Śivaśarman, gesturing toward a luminous gateway to Vaiṣṇava-loka; celestial gardens and apsaras silhouettes hinted beyond, while Kāśī’s ghāṭa/temple architecture anchors the foreground.
FAQs
Merit acquired through dharmic life and sacred association bears fruit beyond death, granting higher worlds and refined enjoyments.
The narrative belongs to the Kāśī-khaṇḍa setting, where Kāśī’s sanctity underwrites the promised spiritual outcomes.
No direct ritual is prescribed here; it introduces a phala (future result) being narrated to Śivaśarman.