Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । ततश्चानन्तरं राजा जगामोद्वेगमुत्तमम् । कथं यामि गृहं त्वद्य वाराणस्यामहं पुनः

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | tataścānantaraṃ rājā jagāmodvegamuttamam | kathaṃ yāmi gṛhaṃ tvadya vārāṇasyāmahaṃ punaḥ

Translation

Īśvara sprach: „Unmittelbar danach geriet der König in höchste Bestürzung: ‚Wie soll ich heute heimkehren? Wie kann ich wieder nach Vārāṇasī zurückkehren?‘“

Word by Word

• ईश्वरः: Īśvara (Lord)
• ईश्वरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• ततः: then
• ततः: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• अनन्तरम्: immediately after
• अनन्तरम्: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अनन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावप्रयोगे अव्ययवत् (adverbial use), क्रियाविशेषण

• राजा: the king
• राजा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• जगाम: went/attained
• जगाम: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• उद्वेगम्: anxiety, agitation
• उद्वेगम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उद्वेग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• उत्तमम्: great, highest
• उत्तमम्: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषणम् (qualifier) उद्वेगम् प्रति

• कथम्: how?
• कथम्: Prashna (Interrogative/प्रश्न)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कथम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, प्रश्नार्थक क्रियाविशेषण (interrogative adverb)

• यामि: shall I go
• यामि: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• गृहम्: home
• गृहम्: Karma (Goal/Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गृह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• तु: but/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, विरोध/विशेषार्थक (particle: but/indeed)

• अद्य: today
• अद्य: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अद्य (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, कालवाचक (temporal adverb)

• वाराणस्याम्: in Vārāṇasī
• वाराणस्याम्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाराणसी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Adhikarana (Manner/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, पुनरावृत्तिवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: again)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vārāṇasī (Kāśī) (referential)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A troubled king pauses mid-journey, face tense with remorse, imagining Kāśī’s ghāṭas and questioning his return; the landscape hints at the Narmadā region while Kāśī appears as a luminous mental vision.

Characters & Entities

• Īśvara (Śiva)
• Citraseṇa
• Vārāṇasī (Kāśī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Remorse awakens spiritual urgency—one who has erred fears facing society and longs for a sacred refuge like Kāśī.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vārāṇasī (Kāśī) is explicitly mentioned, evoking its role as a supreme place of purification and spiritual recourse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse expresses the king’s dilemma about returning home and to Kāśī.