Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

तमोयुक्ताः क्षपा यत्र बहुलेषु न मानवाः । रजोयुजः स्त्रियो यत्र न धर्मबहुला नराः

Transliteration

tamoyuktāḥ kṣapā yatra bahuleṣu na mānavāḥ | rajoyujaḥ striyo yatra na dharmabahulā narāḥ

Translation

Als gefallen gilt jene Gegend, wo die Nächte von Dunkelheit durchdrungen sind und unter den Vielen wahre Menschlichkeit rar ist; wo Frauen an ruhelose Leidenschaft gebunden sind und Männer nicht reich an Dharma sind.

Word by Word

• तमोयुक्ताः: joined with darkness
• तमोयुक्ताः: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तमस् + युक्त (कृदन्त; √युज् (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि/भूतकृत् (past passive participle)

• क्षपाः: nights
• क्षपाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षपा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्धबोधक-अव्यय (where)

• बहुलेषु: in many (places/occasions)
• बहुलेषु: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), बहुवचन; विशेषण (locative plural: in many/abundant [places/times])

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय

• मानवाः: men, humans
• मानवाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मानव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन

• रजोयुजः: associated with passion (rajas)
• रजोयुजः: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रजस् + युज् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘स्त्रियः’)

• स्त्रियः: women
• स्त्रियः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्धबोधक-अव्यय (where)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय

• धर्मबहुलाः: abounding in dharma
• धर्मबहुलाः: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धर्म + बहुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘नराः’)

• नराः: men
• नराः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī / Avimukta (implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A night-heavy town under thick darkness (tamas), restless figures moving in agitation (rajas), contrasted with a bright Kāśī dawn where pilgrims chant and lamps line the ghāṭas.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tamas and rajas dominate where dharma is neglected; the Mahātmya implies that sacred space and right living cultivate sattva and dharmic character.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is the implied standard of spiritual brightness and dharma, contrasted with places dominated by tamas and rajas.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; it supports the broader exhortation to seek dharmic lands—especially Kāśī—and live by dharma.