Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 14

Devanagari script

अनेन गजवक्त्रेण स्वबुद्धिविभवेरिह । काशीप्राप्तिर्यथा मे स्यात्तथा किंचिदनुष्ठितम्

Transliteration

anena gajavaktreṇa svabuddhivibhaveriha | kāśīprāptiryathā me syāttathā kiṃcidanuṣṭhitam

Translation

وبهذا ذي الوجهِ الفيل، وببهاءِ حكمته الذاتية، أُنجز هنا عملٌ ما لكي أنالَ كاشي.

Word by Word

• anena: by this
• anena: Karana (Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (इदम्) (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक; तृतीया, एकवचन — 'by/with this'

• gaja-vaktreṇa: with the elephant-faced one
• gaja-vaktreṇa: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaja (गज) + vaktra (वक्त्र) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया, एकवचन — 'with the elephant-face' (i.e., Gaṇeśa)

• sva-buddhi-vibhavena: by the power of (one’s) own intellect
• sva-buddhi-vibhavena: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (स्व) + buddhi (बुद्धि) + vibhava (विभव) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया, एकवचन — 'by the power of (his/my) own intellect'

• iha: here
• iha: Kriya-viseshana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (इह)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) — 'here'

• kāśī-prāptiḥ: attainment of Kāśī
• kāśī-prāptiḥ: Karta (Subject of syāt)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (काशी) + prāpti (प्राप्ति) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन — 'attainment of Kāśī'

• yathā: so that/as
• yathā: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (यथा)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction/adverb) — 'as/so that'

• me: my
• me: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (अस्मद्) (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी/चतुर्थी-एकवचन रूप (enclitic) — here षष्ठी 'of me/my'

• syāt: may be
• syāt: Kriya (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — 'may be'

• tathā: thus
• tathā: Kriya-viseshana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (तथा)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) — 'thus/accordingly'

• kiṃcit: something
• kiṃcit: Karman (Object/predicate complement with anuṣṭhitam)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kiṃcid (किंचिद्) (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — 'something/a little'

• anuṣṭhitam: has been performed
• anuṣṭhitam: Kriya (Predicate/result)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu-ṣṭhā (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — 'performed/done'

Speaker

Śiva

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (as siddhi attained)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devas/Gaṇeśa in-scene; broader audience via narration

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva credits the elephant-faced Gaṇeśa’s own brilliance of wisdom for undertaking a decisive act here, ensuring Śiva’s attainment of Kāśī.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṇeśa (Gajavaktra)
• Kāśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Wisdom and divine agency remove obstacles: Gaṇeśa’s बुद्धि (buddhi) becomes the means for attaining the highest sacred goal represented by Kāśī.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), described as a supreme attainment (prāpti) even for exalted beings.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Only the general notion of anuṣṭhāna (a performed undertaking); no specific vrata, snāna, or dāna is named in this verse.