Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

रक्षितानामनाथानां सदा मन्मुखदर्शिनाम् । अनाथनाथ भवता ह्यायुःशेषस्वरूपिणा

Transliteration

rakṣitānāmanāthānāṃ sadā manmukhadarśinām | anāthanātha bhavatā hyāyuḥśeṣasvarūpiṇā

Translation

نحنُ اليتامى العاجزونَ الذين حَفِظتَهم، لا نزالُ نُحدِّقُ إلى وجهِكَ؛ يا مَلجأَ مَن لا مَلجأَ له، يا مَن هو صورةُ ما تبقّى من أعمارِنا، كُنْ لنا عَوْنًا وسَنَدًا.

Word by Word

• रक्षितानाम्: of (those) protected
• रक्षितानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √रक्ष् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; ‘of the protected’

• अनाथानाम्: of the helpless
• अनाथानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• सदा: always
• सदा: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)

• मत्: my
• मत्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6), एकवचन; सर्वनाम-रूप ‘my’ (समासे पूर्वपद-रूप)

• मुखदर्शिनाम्: of those who look to my face
• मुखदर्शिनाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुख (प्रातिपदिक) + √दृश् (धातु) + णिनि/शिन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (मत्-सम्बन्धः) ‘of those who look at (my) face’

• अनाथनाथ: O lord of the helpless
• अनाथनाथ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनाथ (प्रातिपदिक) + नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः ‘lord of the helpless’

• भवता: by you
• भवता: Karana (Instrument/Agent/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भवत् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; आदरार्थ-प्रयोग ‘by you’

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha-bodhaka (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle; emphasis/indeed)

• आयुःशेषस्वरूपिणा: as (one) embodying the remaining lifespan
• आयुःशेषस्वरूपिणा: Karana (Instrument/Agent/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आयुः (प्रातिपदिक) + शेष (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वरूपिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; षष्ठी/तत्पुरुष-समासः ‘having the form of the remaining lifespan’

Speaker

Birds (petitioners) addressing Śiva (implied from surrounding verses)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Avimukta (Kāśī)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A sage addressed as ‘mune’ in the surrounding verses (internal dialogue setting)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Helpless devotees (here, the young parrots as supplicants) gaze upward toward Śiva’s compassionate face; the Lord stands calm, embodying their remaining lifespan, with Kāśī’s ghāṭas and liṅga sanctum hinted behind.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Anāthanātha)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True refuge is Śiva: the helpless are sustained by turning their attention toward the Lord and trusting his protection.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśī-khaṇḍa framework glorifies Kāśī as Śiva’s city; this verse functions as a devotional appeal within that sacred-geography setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is stated; the practice implied is bhakti—continual remembrance and face-to-face devotion (darśana-oriented attention).