Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 50

Devanagari script

निश्चितं ब्राह्मणाधाराः सर्वे वेदाः सवासवाः । गीर्वाणा ब्राह्मणबला नात्र कार्या विचारणा

Transliteration

niścitaṃ brāhmaṇādhārāḥ sarve vedāḥ savāsavāḥ | gīrvāṇā brāhmaṇabalā nātra kāryā vicāraṇā

Translation

Gewiss ist es: Alle Veden, samt Indra und den Göttern, ruhen auf den Brāhmaṇas. Die Himmlischen werden durch die Brāhmaṇas gestärkt—hier bedarf es keiner weiteren Erwägung.

Word by Word

• निश्चितम्: certainly/decidedly
• निश्चितम्: Vākyārtha-dyotaka
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: निश्चित (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √चि + नि)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषणरूपेण नपुंसक-प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (adverbial accusative): 'certainly/it is decided'

• ब्राह्मण-आधाराः: supported by Brahmins
• ब्राह्मण-आधाराः: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक) + आधार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: 'ब्राह्मणानाम् आधाराः' (having Brahmins as support); विशेषण (of वेदाः)

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (of वेदाः)

• वेदाः: Vedas
• वेदाः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• स-वासवाः: together with Vāsava (Indra)
• स-वासवाः: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स (अव्यय/उपसर्गार्थे 'सह') + वासव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; सहार्थक-विशेषण: 'वासवैः सह' (together with Indra and the gods)

• गीर्वाणाः: the gods (gīrvāṇas)
• गीर्वाणाः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गीर्वाण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• ब्राह्मण-बलाः: having Brahmins as their strength
• ब्राह्मण-बलाः: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक) + बल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: 'ब्राह्मणानां बलं येषाम्' (whose strength is Brahmins); विशेषण (of गीर्वाणाः)

• न: not
• न: Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात (negation particle)

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Deśa/Viṣaya
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: here/in this matter)

• कार्यā: to be done/necessary
• कार्यā: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कार्य (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √कृ, यत्)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (predicate adjective of विचारणा)

• विचारणा: deliberation
• विचारणा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विचारणा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (narration to Agastya, inferred)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (implicit)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Naimiṣāraṇya ṛṣis (frame assumed; not explicit in verse)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A conclusive tableau: brāhmaṇas seated in calm authority with Vedas; above them Indra and devas appear supported—almost resting upon a luminous foundation—signifying ‘brāhmaṇa-bala’ as the base of heaven’s strength.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas
• Vedas
• Indra (Vāsava)
• Devas (Gīrvāṇas)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇic worldview treats sacred learning and its custodians as the backbone of divine harmony and societal well-being.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse does not name a site; it is embedded in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s broader glorification of Kāśī as a dharma-anchoring sacred landscape.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit prescription; it asserts the foundational role of Brāhmaṇas for Vedic rites and divine strength.