Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 21
यथा न मुक्तिरत्र स्यात्कस्यापि करवै तथा । इति शप्तुं यदोद्युक्तः संजहास तदा शिवः
yathā na muktiratra syātkasyāpi karavai tathā | iti śaptuṃ yadodyuktaḥ saṃjahāsa tadā śivaḥ
“Hãy để nơi đây không một ai đạt được giải thoát!”—khi ông sắp thốt lời nguyền như thế, Śiva bỗng cất tiếng cười vang.
Skanda (narrating); quoted intent of Durvāsā; Śiva reacts
Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Śaunaka and sages
Scene: Durvāsā, arm raised to curse, is frozen mid-utterance as Śiva appears laughing—cosmic, compassionate, and unthreatened—within the sacred precinct.
FAQs
The liberating power of Kāśī is upheld by Śiva; hostile intent cannot overturn the dharma of the sacred kṣetra.
Kāśī, implied as the place where mukti is naturally available and divinely safeguarded.
None; the focus is on the doctrine of mukti in Kāśī and Śiva’s protection of the kṣetra.