Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 13
अरुंधतीं ध्रुवं चैव विष्णोस्त्रीणिपदानि च । आसन्नमृत्युर्नोपश्येच्चतुर्थं मातृमंडलम्
aruṃdhatīṃ dhruvaṃ caiva viṣṇostrīṇipadāni ca | āsannamṛtyurnopaśyeccaturthaṃ mātṛmaṃḍalam
凡死期将近之人，不能见阿伦达蒂（Arundhatī），亦不能见北极星德鲁瓦（Dhruva），也不能见毗湿奴（Viṣṇu）的三步；并且连第四者——诸母神之轮（Mātṛ-maṇḍala）亦不得瞻见。
Skanda
Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (ariṣṭa-lakṣaṇa via celestial non-perception)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Night over Kāśī: a seeker looks up but cannot perceive Arundhatī near Vasiṣṭha, cannot find Dhruva, cannot trace Viṣṇu’s three steps (Trivikrama asterism), and the protective Mātṛ-maṇḍala is absent; below, the glow of temples and the Gaṅgā suggests refuge despite failing sight.
FAQs
As the end approaches, perception itself may alter; therefore, one should secure spiritual merit early through devotion and righteous conduct.
Within the Kāśī Khaṇḍa frame, Kāśī is the implied sacred refuge where preparation for death is oriented toward mokṣa.
No explicit ritual is prescribed; it lists astral-vision omens associated with imminent death.