Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 67

Devanagari script

बाह्यावरणगाश्चैते काश्यामष्टौ विनायकाः । उच्चाटयत्यभक्तांश्च भक्तानां सर्वसिद्धिदाः

Transliteration

bāhyāvaraṇagāścaite kāśyāmaṣṭau vināyakāḥ | uccāṭayatyabhaktāṃśca bhaktānāṃ sarvasiddhidāḥ

Translation

Diese acht Vināyakas weilen im äußeren Bezirk von Kāśī; sie vertreiben die Ungläubigen, und den Verehrern schenken sie jede Siddhi, jede Vollendung.

Word by Word

• bāhya-āvaraṇa-gāḥ: dwelling in the outer enclosure
• bāhya-āvaraṇa-gāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bāhya (प्रातिपदिक) + āvaraṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + ga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; विनायकाः इति विशेषणम्

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय (conjunction)

• ete: these
• ete: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• kāśyām: in Kāśī
• kāśyām: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; अधिकरण

• aṣṭau: eight
• aṣṭau: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aṣṭan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन (विशेष-रूप: संख्या); विनायकाः इति विशेषणम्

• vināyakāḥ: Vināyakas
• vināyakāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vināyaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

• uccāṭayati: drives away
• uccāṭayati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: uccāṭaya (धातु: √caṭ/√cāṭ? causative stem uccāṭaya-)
• Form: लट् (Present/लट्), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद; causative sense ‘to drive away’

• abhaktān: the non-devotees
• abhaktān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a-bhakta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), बहुवचन; कर्म

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय (conjunction)

• bhaktānām: of devotees
• bhaktānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन; सम्बन्ध

• sarva-siddhi-dāḥ: givers of all attainments
• sarva-siddhi-dāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + siddhi (प्रातिपदिक) + dā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; ‘दाः’ = दातारः (givers)

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Aṣṭa-vināyaka (Kāśī bāhyāvaraṇa)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sages/interlocutor of Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Eight Vināyakas stationed like sentinels around Kāśī’s outer boundary; a luminous protective ring. Devotees are welcomed with boons, while the faithless are turned away by an unseen force.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Aṣṭa-Vināyaka (eight Vināyakas)
• Vināyaka (Gaṇeśa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred space is protected by divine guardians: devotion grants siddhi, while irreverence is spiritually repelled.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The outer protective circuit (bāhya-āvaraṇa) of Kāśī where eight Vināyakas are stationed.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is mentioned; the verse summarizes outcomes for bhaktas versus abhaktas.