Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

एकोऽजरद्गवः सोपि नान्यस्मात्परिजीवति । श्मशानवासिनः सर्वे सर्वे कौपीनवाससः

Transliteration

eko'jaradgavaḥ sopi nānyasmātparijīvati | śmaśānavāsinaḥ sarve sarve kaupīnavāsasaḥ

Translation

ليس هناك إلا ثورٌ واحد لا يهرم، وحتى هو لا يعيش معتمدًا على غيره. جميعهم يقيمون في مواطن الحرق، وجميعهم لا يلبسون إلا مئزرًا.

Word by Word

• एकः: one
• एकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; संख्याविशेषण

• अजरद्गवः: one who has a non-aging cow/bull
• अजरद्गवः: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अ-जरत्-गव (प्रातिपदिक; अ + जरत् + गव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (अजरद् गवो यस्य/यः)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• अपि: also
• अपि: Emphasis (Nipāta/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle: ‘also/even’)

• न: not
• न: Negation (निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध (negation particle)

• अन्यस्मात्: from another
• अन्यस्मात्: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन

• परिजीवति: lives (by depending)
• परिजीवति: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि-जीव् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• श्मशानवासिनः: dwellers in the cremation-ground
• श्मशानवासिनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्मशान-वासिन् (प्रातिपदिक; श्मशान + वासिन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (श्मशाने वासिनः)

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; पुनरुक्ति-बल (repetition for emphasis)

• कौपीनवाससः: wearers of loincloths
• कौपीनवाससः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कौपीन-वासस् (प्रातिपदिक; कौपीन + वासस्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः (कौपीनं वासो येषाम्)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śmaśāna (conceptual; Kāśī also has Manikarnikā)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cremation-ground settlement: ash-grey ascetics in loincloths, skull-bowls, sparse huts; a solitary timeless bull stands calm amid funeral pyres; atmosphere of detachment rather than horror.

Characters & Entities

• Bull (Nandin motif)
• Śmaśāna (cremation-ground)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Renunciation and fearlessness—living amid impermanence (śmaśāna)—signify transcendence, a key Śaiva ideal celebrated in Kāśī lore.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī, whose cremation-ground sanctity is integral to its identity as the city of liberation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse alludes to ascetic dress and śmaśāna-dwelling as Śaiva motifs rather than a prescribed rite.