Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 180

Devanagari script

संख्यास्ति यावती देहे देहिनो रोमसंभवा । तावतोप्यपराधा वै यांति लिंग प्रतिष्ठया

Transliteration

saṃkhyāsti yāvatī dehe dehino romasaṃbhavā | tāvatopyaparādhā vai yāṃti liṃga pratiṣṭhayā

Translation

So zahlreich wie die Haare sind, die am Leib eines Lebewesens wachsen, so zahlreich sind wahrlich die Vergehen, die durch die Errichtung eines Śiva-liṅga vernichtet werden.

Word by Word

• saṃkhyā: number, count
• saṃkhyā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃkhyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन

• asti: is, exists
• asti: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• yāvatī: as much as, as many as
• yāvatī: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yāvat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying saṃkhyā)

• dehe: in the body
• dehe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन

• dehinaḥ: of the embodied being
• dehinaḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dehin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive), एकवचन

• romasaṃbhavā: arising from hairs (i.e., hair-born)
• romasaṃbhavā: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: roma (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃbhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (roma-saṃbhavā = ‘arising from hair’); विशेषण (qualifying saṃkhyā)

• tāvataḥ: so many
• tāvataḥ: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tāvat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक/परिमाणवाचक (quantifier)

• api: also, even
• api: Avyaya (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), समुच्चय/अपि-भाव (also/even)

• aparādhāḥ: offences, transgressions
• aparādhāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aparādha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• vai: indeed
• vai: Avyaya (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• yānti: go, proceed, accrue
• yānti: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: yā (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• liṅga: liṅga (Śiva-emblem)
• liṅga: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• pratiṣṭhayā: by (its) installation/consecration
• pratiṣṭhayā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pratiṣṭhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and the Naimiṣāraṇya ṛṣis (typical)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee installs a Śiva-liṅga in Kāśī with Vedic chants, water-pot (kalaśa), flowers, bilva leaves, lamps, and a gathered community; the atmosphere suggests the washing away of innumerable sins.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva-liṅga
• Liṅga-pratiṣṭhā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Consecrating a Śiva-liṅga is presented as a powerful act of dharma that removes vast accumulations of offences.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse occurs in the Kāśī Khaṇḍa, implying the merit is framed within the sacred geography and sanctity of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Liṅga-pratiṣṭhā—establishing and ritually consecrating a Śiva-liṅga.