Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 62

Devanagari script

त्वदालापसमालापं कलयन्किलकाकलीम् । कोकिलोपि मयाकर्णि नालकाकीर्णकर्णया

Transliteration

tvadālāpasamālāpaṃ kalayankilakākalīm | kokilopi mayākarṇi nālakākīrṇakarṇayā

Translation

Selbst das süße Rufen des Kuckucks, das wie ein Widerhall deiner Rede klingt, konnte ich nicht wirklich hören; meine Ohren waren nur von Klage erfüllt.

Word by Word

• tvat: your
• tvat: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-एकवचन (Genitive Singular), सर्वनाम

• ālāpa: speech, talk
• ālāpa: Sambandha (in compound)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ālāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-एकवचन (Nom./Acc. Singular)

• samālāpam: a responsive/echoing talk
• samālāpam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sam-ālāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-एकवचन (Accusative Singular); समासः (तत्पुरुष) = ālāpa + samālāpa (echo/response-talk)

• kalayan: making, producing
• kalayan: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kal (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त (Present active participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• kila: indeed/it is said
• kila: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kila (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle: report/emphasis)

• kākalīm: cooing/warbling sound
• kākalīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kākalī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-एकवचन (Accusative Singular)

• kokilaḥ: cuckoo
• kokilaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kokila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन (Nominative Singular)

• api: also, even
• api: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle: also/even)

• mayā: by me
• mayā: Karana (Instrument/agent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया-एकवचन (Instrumental Singular), सर्वनाम

• akarṇi: was heard / I heard
• akarṇi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लुङ् (Aorist), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद (अकर्णि = ‘made (it) heard’/‘heard’)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध (negation particle)

• alakā: lock of hair
• alakā: Sambandha (in compound)
• Type: Noun
• Root: alakā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-एकवचन (Nom./Acc. Singular)

• kīrṇa: covered, filled
• kīrṇa: Sambandha (in compound)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √kṝ (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (Past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-एकवचन

• karṇayā: with an ear covered by hair-locks
• karṇayā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-एकवचन (Instrumental Singular); समासः (तत्पुरुष) = alakā + kīrṇa + karṇa (ear covered by hair-locks)

Speaker

A royal mother/queen (rājapatnī), speaking to her son

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sages/seekers in Kāśī-khaṇḍa frame (unspecified in verse)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cuckoo sings in a flowering tree near the river/royal garden; the queen, ears metaphorically ‘filled with lament’, turns away, unable to receive the sweetness, tears falling.

Characters & Entities

• Kokila (cuckoo)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A mind overwhelmed by sorrow cannot relish even beauty; inner purification is needed for true ‘hearing’ and joy.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific site is named.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.