Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 20

Devanagari script

दशाश्वमेधिकं तीर्थं मंदराच्च गणागमः । पिशाचमोचनाख्यानं गणेशप्रेषणं ततः

Transliteration

daśāśvamedhikaṃ tīrthaṃ maṃdarācca gaṇāgamaḥ | piśācamocanākhyānaṃ gaṇeśapreṣaṇaṃ tataḥ

Translation

ثم يأتي المَخاضُ المقدّس المسمّى دَشاأشفاميدهيكا (Daśāśvamedhika)؛ ومجيءُ غاناتِ شيفا من ماندارا (Mandara). ثم تُروى حكايةُ الخلاص من البيشاتشا (piśāca)، وبعدها مهمةُ إيفاد غانيشا (Gaṇeśa).

Word by Word

• daśāśvamedhikam: connected with ten Aśvamedhas
• daśāśvamedhikam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: daśa (प्रातिपदिक) + aśvamedhika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः (दश अश्वमेधाः यस्मिन्/सम्बद्धम्)

• tīrtham: sacred ford; pilgrimage place
• tīrtham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• maṃdarāt: from Mandara
• maṃdarāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maṃdara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय)

• gaṇa-āgamaḥ: arrival of the Gaṇas
• gaṇa-āgamaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + āgama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गणानाम् आगमः)

• piśāca-mocana-ākhyānam: account of the Piśāca-liberation
• piśāca-mocana-ākhyānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: piśāca (प्रातिपदिक) + mocana (प्रातिपदिक) + ākhyāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (पिशाचमोचनस्य आख्यानम्)

• gaṇeśa-preṣaṇam: mission/sending by Gaṇeśa
• gaṇeśa-preṣaṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṇeśa (प्रातिपदिक) + preṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गणेशस्य प्रेषणम्)

• tataḥ: thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) — thereafter

Speaker

Skanda (deduced Kāśīkhaṇḍa setting)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Daśāśvamedhika

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis/assembly (contextual)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At Daśāśvamedh ghāṭa, pilgrims bathe as Śiva’s gaṇas arrive in a divine procession from Mandara; a separate vignette shows a tormented person freed from piśāca influence through kṣetra grace and ritual purity.

Characters & Entities

• Daśāśvamedhika Tīrtha
• Mandara
• Śiva-gaṇas
• Piśāca
• Gaṇeśa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī is depicted as both merit-bestowing and protective—tīrthas grant puṇya, and divine agencies remove afflictions and spirit-troubles.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Daśāśvamedhika Tīrtha (classically linked with Daśāśvamedha Ghāṭa in Kāśī’s pilgrimage circuit).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Piśāca-mocana implies remedial/cleansing rites; the verse itself names the topic without detailing procedure.