Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

अवंध्यं दिवसं कुर्यात्स्नानदानजपादिभिः । यतः काश्यां कृतं कर्म महत्त्वाय प्रकल्पते

Transliteration

avaṃdhyaṃ divasaṃ kuryātsnānadānajapādibhiḥ | yataḥ kāśyāṃ kṛtaṃ karma mahattvāya prakalpate

Translation

Man soll den Tag fruchtbar machen durch heiliges Bad, Almosengabe, Japa und ähnliche Handlungen; denn jedes Werk, das in Kāśī vollbracht wird, wird zur Ursache großer geistlicher Vortrefflichkeit.

Word by Word

• अवन्ध्यम्: not wasted
• अवन्ध्यम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अवन्ध्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (दिवसम्) — not futile

• दिवसम्: the day
• दिवसम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिवस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — day

• कुर्यात्: should make
• कुर्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), तृतीयपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद — “should make/should render”

• स्नानदानजपादिभिः: by bathing, charity, japa, etc.
• स्नानदानजपादिभिः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक) + दान (प्रातिपदिक) + जप (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसक-समाहार, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्व-समासः (स्नानं च दानं च जपश्च) + आदि — “by bathing, giving, japa, etc.”

• यतः: because
• यतः: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यतस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, हेतुवाचक — “because”

• काश्याम्: in Kāśī
• काश्याम्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन — in Kāśī

• कृतम्: done
• कृतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु) → कृत (कृदन्त-भूतकर्मणि)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (कर्म) — done/performed

• कर्म: a deed
• कर्म: Kartr (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — action/deed

• महत्त्वाय: for greatness
• महत्त्वाय: Sampradana (Purpose/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महत्त्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/सम्प्रदान), एकवचन — for greatness/for great merit

• प्रकल्पते: becomes (conducive)
• प्रकल्पते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + कल्प् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, तृतीयपुरुष, एकवचन — “becomes/is fit/serves (as)”

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Not specified in excerpt

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A full day in Kāśī shown as a sequence: dawn Gaṅgā bath, midday charity to a needy person or brāhmaṇa, evening japa with rosary, lamps on the ghats; the city’s sanctity subtly radiates through all acts.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• Snāna
• Dāna
• Japa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Do not waste time in a sacred kṣetra: daily discipline and generosity in Kāśī elevate ordinary actions into great merit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī as the supreme field where karma becomes ‘mahattva’ (great spiritual consequence).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Daily observances—snāna (bath), dāna (charity), japa (repetition), and related practices—to make one’s day meaningful in Kāśī.