Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 92

Devanagari script

पक्षव्रतं वा कुर्वीत मासोपोषणमेव वा । नोर्जो वंध्यो विधातव्यो व्रतिना केनचित्क्वचित्

Transliteration

pakṣavrataṃ vā kurvīta māsopoṣaṇameva vā | norjo vaṃdhyo vidhātavyo vratinā kenacitkvacit

Translation

Man kann ein Gelübde für eine halbe Monatshälfte vollziehen oder sogar den ganzen Monat fasten. Die Ūrja-(Kārtika-)Observanz darf niemals fruchtlos gemacht werden — von keinem Gelübdeübenden, zu keiner Zeit und auf keine Weise.

Word by Word

• pakṣa-vratam: a fortnight vow
• pakṣa-vratam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pakṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पक्षस्य व्रतम्) — Neuter, Accusative singular

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय — disjunctive ‘or’

• kurvīta: should do/undertake
• kurvīta: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपदम् — Optative, 3rd person singular, ātmanepada

• māsa-upoṣaṇam: a month-long fast/abstinence
• māsa-upoṣaṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक) + upoṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (मासस्य उपोषणम्) — Neuter, Accusative singular

• eva: indeed, just
• eva: Sambandha/Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphasis) — emphatic particle

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय — ‘or’

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात (negation particle) — ‘not’

• ūrje: in Ūrjā (Kārtika month)
• ūrje: Adhikaraṇa (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ūrj (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Feminine, Locative singular; here ‘in Ūrjā’ (= Kārtika)

• vandhyaḥ: barren, fruitless
• vandhyaḥ: Karta (Predicate/कर्ता-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vandhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (विधातव्यः इति) — Masculine, Nominative singular; predicate adjective

• vidhātavyaḥ: should be made/considered
• vidhātavyaḥ: Kriyā (Obligation/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi + √dhā (धातु) → vidhātavya (कृदन्त, तव्यत्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तव्यत्-प्रत्ययान्त (कर्तव्य/भवितव्य) — Masculine, Nominative singular; gerundive ‘to be made/should be made’

• vratinā: by the vow-observer
• vratinā: Karana (Instrument/Agentive means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vratin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Masculine, Instrumental singular

• kenacit: by anyone
• kenacit: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अनिश्चित-प्रत्यय (चित्) — Instrumental singular ‘by anyone’

• kvacit: ever, at any time/anywhere
• kvacit: Adverbial (देश/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kvacit (अव्यय)
• Form: देश/कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb) — ‘ever/anywhere/at any time’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Ūrja/Kārtika-vrata in Kāśī-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee making a firm saṃkalpa before a shrine in Kāśī, with a calendar-like sequence of days (fortnight/month) symbolized by a garland of lamps; the text’s warning against 'vandhya' is shown as an unbroken flame.

Characters & Entities

• Ūrja
• Kārtika

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kārtika/Ūrja-vrata is to be protected with sincerity and consistency so it does not become spiritually ‘barren’ or ineffective.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśī Khaṇḍa framework implicitly glorifies Kashi, while the verse directly glorifies the Ūrja/Kārtika observance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Options given: a fortnight-long vow (pakṣa-vrata) or month-long fasting (māsopoṣaṇa), with an injunction to keep the vow effective.