Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 63

Devanagari script

यत्कर्मविहितं येन शुभं वाथ शुभेतरम् । स एव भुंक्ते तत्तथ्यं विधिसूत्रनियंत्रितः

Transliteration

yatkarmavihitaṃ yena śubhaṃ vātha śubhetaram | sa eva bhuṃkte tattathyaṃ vidhisūtraniyaṃtritaḥ

Translation

«Welche Tat auch immer jemand vollbringt—gut oder nicht gut—er allein erfährt gewiss ihre Frucht, gebunden an den Faden des kosmischen Gesetzes.»

Word by Word

• यत्: whatever
• यत्: Karma (Correlative object/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun)

• कर्म: deed, action
• कर्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• विहितम्: ordained, allotted
• विहितम्: Karma (Predicative/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि-√धा (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘ordained/assigned’

• येन: by whom/through whom
• येन: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative)

• शुभम्: good (result)
• शुभम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (विकल्पार्थक-निपात/particle of alternative)

• अथ: and/or else
• अथ: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय/अनन्तरार्थक-निपात; here ‘or else/and’)

• शुभ-इतरम्: the opposite of good, evil
• शुभ-इतरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुभ (प्रातिपदिक) + इतर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (शुभात् इतरम् = अशुभम्)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता), एकवचन

• एव: indeed, only
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अवधारण-निपात/emphatic particle)

• भुङ्क्ते: experiences, enjoys/suffers
• भुङ्क्ते: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भुज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (वर्तमान/present), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन

• तथ्यम्: truly, as a fact
• तथ्यम्: Karma (Object-complement/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तथ्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (predicative ‘true’)

• विधि-सूत्र-नियन्त्रितः: controlled by the rule-thread (law)
• विधि-सूत्र-नियन्त्रितः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विधि (प्रातिपदिक) + सूत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + नियन्त्रित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त ‘नियन्त्रित’; तत्पुरुष (विधिसूत्रेण नियन्त्रितः)

Speaker

Divyāṅganā (the celestial maiden singing the gāthā)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpa (King)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The celestial maiden’s song crystallizes into a visual of a golden thread (vidhi-sūtra) binding deeds to their fruits, with balanced scales hovering over the ocean under the full moon.

Characters & Entities

• Karma
• Vidhi (cosmic ordinance)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Karmic responsibility is inescapable: each person must bear the fruits of their own actions under divine law.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is named; the teaching functions as a universal dharma principle within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual is prescribed; it is a doctrinal statement about karma and accountability.