Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 82

Devanagari script

कश्यपेशं नमस्कृत्य हरिकेशवनं ततः । वैद्यनाथं ततो दृष्ट्वा ध्रुवेशमथ वीक्ष्य च

Transliteration

kaśyapeśaṃ namaskṛtya harikeśavanaṃ tataḥ | vaidyanāthaṃ tato dṛṣṭvā dhruveśamatha vīkṣya ca

Translation

Nachdem man Kaśyapeśa die Ehre erwiesen hat, soll man dann nach Harikeśavana weiterziehen. Danach, nachdem man Vaidyanātha geschaut hat, soll man auch Dhruveśa erblicken.

Word by Word

• कश्यपेशम्: Kaśyapeśa (Lord Kaśyapa)
• कश्यपेशम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कश्यप-ईश (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; ‘कश्यपस्य ईशः’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• नमस्कृत्य: having saluted
• नमस्कृत्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नमस्√कृ (धातु; क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्ययभावः; क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund) — ‘नमस्कृत्य’ = having saluted

• हरिकेशवनम्: Harikeśa forest
• हरिकेशवनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि-केश-वन (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (हरिकेशस्य वनम्) षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• ततः: thereafter
• ततः: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb) — ‘thereafter/from there’

• वैद्यनाथम्: Vaidyanātha
• वैद्यनाथम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वैद्य-नाथ (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (वैद्यस्य नाथः) षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण — ‘then/thereafter’

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √दृश् (धातु; क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्ययभावः; क्त्वान्त (absolutive) — ‘having seen’

• ध्रुवेशम्: Dhruveśa
• ध्रुवेशम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ध्रुव-ईश (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (ध्रुवस्य ईशः) षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रम/समुच्चयार्थक (particle) — ‘then/next’

• वीक्ष्य: having beheld
• वीक्ष्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √वीक्ष् (धातु; क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्ययभावः; क्त्वान्त (absolutive) — ‘having looked at/seen’

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction) — ‘and’

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kaśyapeśa–Harikeśavana–Vaidyanātha–Dhruveśa (Kāśī circuit)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim with folded hands moves through Kāśī’s narrow lanes, pausing at successive shrines—Kaśyapeśa, a grove-like Harikeśavana, then Vaidyanātha and Dhruveśa—each marked by a liṅga, lamps, and bilva leaves.

Characters & Entities

• Kaśyapeśa
• Harikeśavana
• Vaidyanātha
• Dhruveśa
• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Merit in Kāśī is gained through reverent, sequential darśana—humility (namaskāra) and steady devotion while moving from shrine to shrine.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A Kāśī pilgrimage cluster centered on Kaśyapeśa, Harikeśavana, Vaidyanātha, and Dhruveśa—shrines within the sacred landscape of Vārāṇasī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The prescription is darśana and namaskāra—bowing to Kaśyapeśa and then visiting/seeing the subsequent shrines in order.