Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 38

Devanagari script

आविर्भाव तिरोभावौ यद्भूनर्तनवर्तिनौ । स एव वक्ति सततं सर्वात्मा वेदपूरुषः

Transliteration

āvirbhāva tirobhāvau yadbhūnartanavartinau | sa eva vakti satataṃ sarvātmā vedapūruṣaḥ

Translation

„In Ihm wirken Offenbarung und Verhüllung im Tanz der Wesen; Er allein spricht unaufhörlich als das innere Selbst aller, als der Puruṣa des Veda.“

Word by Word

• āvirbhāvaḥ: manifestation
• āvirbhāvaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āvir-bhāva (आविर् + भाव प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव-समास (āvir = manifest)

• tirobhāvaḥ: disappearance/veiling
• tirobhāvaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tiro-bhāva (तिरस्/तिरो + भाव प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव-समास

• yad-bhūnartana-vartinau: which abide in (the Lord’s) becoming and dancing (i.e., cosmic play)
• yad-bhūnartana-vartinau: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yad + bhū-nartana-vartin (भू + नर्तन + वर्तिन् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), द्विवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास; यद्-सम्बन्ध (relative)

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• eva: indeed
• eva: Avadharana (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (एव अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (emphasis)

• vakti: speaks
• vakti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (वच् धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• satatam: always
• satatam: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: satatam (सततम् अव्यय/नपुंसक-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

• sarvātmā: the Self of all
• sarvātmā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva-ātman (सर्व + आत्मन् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास

• veda-pūruṣaḥ: the Vedic Person
• veda-pūruṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: veda-pūruṣa (वेद + पुरुष प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास

Speaker

Gaṇas

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Dvija/brāhmaṇa inquirer

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A symbolic tableau: behind the speakers, a cosmic dancer motif (Śiva as Naṭarāja-like archetype) with alternating waves of creation and dissolution; the brāhmaṇa listens in stillness.

Characters & Entities

• Sarvātmā
• Veda-pūruṣa
• Cosmic manifestation and withdrawal

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Supreme is the inner witness and teacher in all, sustaining the cosmos through appearing and withdrawing while remaining the Vedic truth.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is the overarching sacred landscape where such liberating knowledge is celebrated.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is metaphysical and revelatory.