Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 77
यवान्नैर्वा फलाहारैः शाकाहारैः पयोव्रतैः । प्राणयात्रां प्रकुर्वीत यावत्प्राणः स्वयं व्रजेत्
yavānnairvā phalāhāraiḥ śākāhāraiḥ payovrataiḥ | prāṇayātrāṃ prakurvīta yāvatprāṇaḥ svayaṃ vrajet
Nương sống bằng lúa mạch, hoặc ăn trái cây, hoặc ăn rau, hoặc giữ nguyện dùng sữa, người ấy nên tiếp tục “hành trình của prāṇa”—cho đến khi hơi thở sinh mệnh tự rời đi.
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī
Type: kshetra
Scene: An austere figure on the Gaṅgā’s edge at dawn, holding a small bowl of milk or barley gruel, prayer beads in hand, eyes toward a distant temple spire; the body frail yet composed, suggesting the ‘prāṇa-yātrā’ until natural departure.
FAQs
It commends disciplined, simple sustenance as a form of tapas, while affirming acceptance of life’s natural end.
The Kāśī setting is implicit; the verse itself is not a site-glorification passage.
Permissible austerity-diets: barley food, fruits, vegetables, and milk-based vrata.