Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

व्रश्चनान्वृक्षनिर्यासान्पायसापूपशष्कुलीः । अदेवपित्र्यं पललमवत्सागोपयस्त्यजेत्

Transliteration

vraścanānvṛkṣaniryāsānpāyasāpūpaśaṣkulīḥ | adevapitryaṃ palalamavatsāgopayastyajet

Translation

Man soll vraścana, Baumexsudate (Gummen/Harze), Süßreis (pāyasa), Kuchen (āpūpa) und frittierte Gebäcke (śaṣkulī) aufgeben; ebenso meide man Speisen/Opfergaben, die nicht für die Devas und die Ahnen bestimmt sind, palala (Sesamzubereitungen) sowie die Milch einer Kuh ohne Kalb.

Word by Word

• व्रश्चनान्: vraścana (a food item; possibly a kind of vegetable)
• व्रश्चनान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्रश्चन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन

• वृक्षनिर्यासान्: tree exudations/resins
• वृक्षनिर्यासान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृक्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + निर्यास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (वृक्षस्य निर्यासः)

• पायस: rice pudding
• पायस: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पायस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन (समाहार-गणनायां)

• आपूप: cake
• आपूप: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आपूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन (समाहार-गणनायां)

• शष्कुलीः: fried pastries
• शष्कुलीः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शष्कुली (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन

• अदेवपित्र्यम्: food not offered to gods and ancestors
• अदेवपित्र्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अ- (नञ्) + देव (प्रातिपदिक) + पितृ (प्रातिपदिक) + य (तद्धित)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुषः (देवपित्र्यं न)

• पललम्: meat/flesh (palala)
• पललम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पलल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• अवत्सागोपयः: milk of a cow without a calf
• अवत्सागोपयः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अवत्सा (प्रातिपदिक) + गो (प्रातिपदिक) + पयस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (अवत्सायाः गोः पयः = milk of a cow without a calf)

• त्यजेत्: should abandon
• त्यजेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: त्यज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrim/adhikārin

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim declines rich sweets and fried pastries offered by vendors near a ghat, choosing simple fare; a priest instructs on proper offerings for devas and pitṛs; a cow with calf stands nearby as a symbol of proper milk-source.

Characters & Entities

• Deva (gods)
• Pitṛ (ancestors)
• Kāśī (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Food is evaluated by purity and sacral fitness—what aligns with deva–pitṛ obligations is emphasized.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is the setting; the verse supports Kāśī’s sanctity through disciplined, purity-centered living.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Avoid foods deemed unsuitable for divine/ancestral contexts and avoid specific listed items, including milk taken against proper dharmic norms.