Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 71

Devanagari script

न गोशतप्रदानेन न स्वर्णशतदानतः । तत्फलं लभ्यते पुंभिर्यत्सकृल्लिंगपूजनात्

Transliteration

na gośatapradānena na svarṇaśatadānataḥ | tatphalaṃ labhyate puṃbhiryatsakṛlliṃgapūjanāt

Translation

Weder durch die Gabe von hundert Kühen noch durch die Spende von hundert Maßen Gold erlangt der Mensch das Verdienst, das aus der Verehrung des Liṅga auch nur ein einziges Mal entsteht.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Discourse/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• go-śata-pradānena: by the giving of a hundred cows
• go-śata-pradānena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: go (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक) + pradāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गोशतस्य प्रदानेन)

• na: nor
• na: Sambandha (Discourse/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• svarṇa-śata-dānataḥ: from (i.e., by) the donation of a hundred pieces of gold
• svarṇa-śata-dānataḥ: Apadana (Ablative/source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svarṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक) + dāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव-प्रायः प्रयोगः '...तः' = '...से/के कारण'; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (स्वर्णशतस्य दानतः)

• tat-phalam: that fruit/result
• tat-phalam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः—'तत् एव फलम्'

• labhyate: is obtained
• labhyate: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √labh (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोगः (passive)

• puṃbhiḥ: by men
• puṃbhiḥ: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pumān (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन

• yat: which
• yat: Sambandha (Relative pronoun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, यद्-प्रत्ययान्त सर्वनाम; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative)

• sakṛt: once
• sakṛt: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sakṛt (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/परिमाणवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: once)

• liṅga-pūjanāt: from worship of the liṅga
• liṅga-pūjanāt: Apadana (Cause/source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक) + pūjana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (लिङ्गस्य पूजनात्)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Avimukta-Kāśī / Viśveśvara-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim in Kāśī offers bilva leaves and water to a shining liṅga while heaps of gold and cows appear in the background as lesser alternatives, visually subordinated to the act of worship.

Characters & Entities

• Liṅga
• Dāna (cow-gift, gold-gift)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional worship of Śiva is portrayed as yielding a merit surpassing even great acts of charity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśī-māhātmya backdrop highlights liṅga worship’s special potency in Vārāṇasī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Liṅga-pūjā (even once) is recommended as a highly fruitful practice, surpassing large donations.