Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

रक्षितानामनाथानां सदा मन्मुखदर्शिनाम् । अनाथनाथ भवता ह्यायुःशेषस्वरूपिणा

Transliteration

rakṣitānāmanāthānāṃ sadā manmukhadarśinām | anāthanātha bhavatā hyāyuḥśeṣasvarūpiṇā

Translation

Wir, die Schutzlosen und Hilflosen, die du bewahrt hast, schauen stets auf dein Antlitz; o Herr der Heimatlosen, du, der du die Gestalt unserer verbleibenden Lebensspanne bist, sei uns Zuflucht.

Word by Word

• रक्षितानाम्: of (those) protected
• रक्षितानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √रक्ष् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; ‘of the protected’

• अनाथानाम्: of the helpless
• अनाथानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• सदा: always
• सदा: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)

• मत्: my
• मत्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6), एकवचन; सर्वनाम-रूप ‘my’ (समासे पूर्वपद-रूप)

• मुखदर्शिनाम्: of those who look to my face
• मुखदर्शिनाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुख (प्रातिपदिक) + √दृश् (धातु) + णिनि/शिन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (मत्-सम्बन्धः) ‘of those who look at (my) face’

• अनाथनाथ: O lord of the helpless
• अनाथनाथ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनाथ (प्रातिपदिक) + नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः ‘lord of the helpless’

• भवता: by you
• भवता: Karana (Instrument/Agent/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भवत् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; आदरार्थ-प्रयोग ‘by you’

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha-bodhaka (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle; emphasis/indeed)

• आयुःशेषस्वरूपिणा: as (one) embodying the remaining lifespan
• आयुःशेषस्वरूपिणा: Karana (Instrument/Agent/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आयुः (प्रातिपदिक) + शेष (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वरूपिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; षष्ठी/तत्पुरुष-समासः ‘having the form of the remaining lifespan’

Speaker

Birds (petitioners) addressing Śiva (implied from surrounding verses)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Avimukta (Kāśī)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A sage addressed as ‘mune’ in the surrounding verses (internal dialogue setting)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Helpless devotees (here, the young parrots as supplicants) gaze upward toward Śiva’s compassionate face; the Lord stands calm, embodying their remaining lifespan, with Kāśī’s ghāṭas and liṅga sanctum hinted behind.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Anāthanātha)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True refuge is Śiva: the helpless are sustained by turning their attention toward the Lord and trusting his protection.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśī-khaṇḍa framework glorifies Kāśī as Śiva’s city; this verse functions as a devotional appeal within that sacred-geography setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is stated; the practice implied is bhakti—continual remembrance and face-to-face devotion (darśana-oriented attention).