Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

प्रयाणं मंदरात्काशीं वृषभध्वजशूलिनः । जैगीषव्येन संवादो ज्येष्ठस्थाने महेशितुः

Transliteration

prayāṇaṃ maṃdarātkāśīṃ vṛṣabhadhvajaśūlinaḥ | jaigīṣavyena saṃvādo jyeṣṭhasthāne maheśituḥ

Translation

ثم تُروى رحلةُ الربّ حاملِ الرمح الثلاثي (التريشولا)، صاحبِ رايةِ الثور، من ماندارا إلى كاشي؛ ويُذكر حواره مع جايگيشافيا (Jaigīṣavya) في الموضع المقدّس جْييشْتَهَسْثانا (Jyeṣṭhasthāna) لماهيشفرا (Maheśvara).

Word by Word

• प्रयाणम्: the departure/journey
• प्रयाणम्: Karma (Object/Topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रयाण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st)/द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सन्दर्भे विषय-निर्देशः (heading/topic)

• मन्दरात्: from Mandara (mountain)
• मन्दरात्: Apadana (Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मन्दर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन; अपादान (from)

• काशीम्: to Kāśī
• काशीम्: Karma (Destination/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; गत्यर्थे कर्म (destination as object)

• वृषभध्वजशूलिनः: of the bull-bannered trident-bearer (Śiva)
• वृषभध्वजशूलिनः: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृषभध्वज + शूलिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (वृषभध्वजः च शूलिन् च—एक एव)

• जैगीषव्येन: with/by Jaigīṣavya
• जैगीषव्येन: Karana (Instrument/Agent in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जैगीषव्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण/सह (by/with)

• संवादः: dialogue/conversation
• संवादः: Karta (Subject/Topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संवाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• ज्येष्ठस्थाने: at the Jyeṣṭha-place (sacred spot)
• ज्येष्ठस्थाने: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्येष्ठस्थान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (ज्येष्ठस्य स्थानम्)

• महेशितुः: of Maheśitṛ (the Great Lord)
• महेशितुः: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महेशितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; 'महेशितृ' (lord, Śiva)

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Jyeṣṭhasthāna (Maheśvara)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrimage-audience within the Purāṇic frame

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva, trident in hand, bull-banner unfurled, traveling from Mandara toward Kāśī; then seated at Jyeṣṭhasthāna in discourse with the ascetic Jaigīṣavya amid banyan trees and ghāṭa silhouettes.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Vṛṣabhadhvaja, Śūlin)
• Mandara
• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• Jaigīṣavya
• Jyeṣṭhasthāna
• Maheśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī is portrayed as a chosen divine destination of Śiva, making pilgrimage there a theologically charged act of approaching the Lord’s own abode.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Jyeṣṭhasthāna—presented as a key Śaiva sacred spot in Kāśī connected with Maheśvara.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is prescribed; the verse introduces a narrative and a sacred-site dialogue that grounds later prescriptions.