Shloka 46

अविमुक्तक्षेत्रमाहात्म्य

The Greatness of Avimukta–Vārāṇasī and Viśveśvara

Devanagari script

सर्वेषां कर्मणां नाशो नास्ति काशीं पुरीं विना । सर्वं च सुलभं तीर्थं दुर्ल्लभा काशिका पुरी

Transliteration

sarveṣāṃ karmaṇāṃ nāśo nāsti kāśīṃ purīṃ vinā | sarvaṃ ca sulabhaṃ tīrthaṃ durllabhā kāśikā purī

Translation

Without the sacred city of Kāśī, the destruction of all karmas is not attained. Other pilgrimage-places may be easy to reach, but the city of Kāśikā is rare to obtain as a true spiritual refuge.

Word by Word

• sarveṣām: of all
• sarveṣām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural (बहुवचन); pronoun-adjective used substantively

• karmaṇām: of karmas
• karmaṇām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural

• nāśaḥ: destruction
• nāśaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/प्रथमा)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Negation particle (निषेधार्थक अव्यय)

• asti: is/exists
• asti: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (अस् धातु)
• Form: Present tense (लट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• kāśīm: Kāśī
• kāśīm: Karma (कर्म/द्वितीया)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• purīm: city
• purīm: Karma (कर्म/द्वितीया)
• Type: Noun
• Root: purī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular; apposition to kāśīm

• vinā: without
• vinā: Apādāna (अपादान/वियोग)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vinā (अव्यय)
• Form: Prepositional indeclinable (उपपद-अव्यय) governing Accusative

• sarvam: everything
• sarvam: Karta (कर्ता/प्रथमा)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular; here Nominative as predicate-subject

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चय)

• sulabham: easily obtainable
• sulabham: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su-labha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular; कर्मधारयः (सु + लभ) qualifying tīrtham/sarvam

• tīrtham: pilgrimage place
• tīrtham: Karta (कर्ता/प्रथमा)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular; here Nominative in apposition/predicate

• durlabhā: hard to obtain/rare
• durlabhā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dur-labhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular; कर्मधारयः (दुर् + लभ) qualifying kāśikā purī

• kāśikā: of Kāśī
• kāśikā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāśikā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular; adjective of purī

• purī: city
• purī: Karta (कर्ता/प्रथमा)
• Type: Noun
• Root: purī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha

Sthala Purana: Kāśī is proclaimed Avimukta-kṣetra where Śiva as Viśveśvara never abandons the jīva; residence/arrival there is said to enable total karma-kṣaya culminating in liberation (often linked with the tradition of Śiva’s saving upadeśa at death).

Significance: Karma-kṣaya and mokṣa-prāpti; regarded as the rarest refuge among tīrthas because it is Śiva’s own kṣetra.

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Annapūrṇā

Role: nurturing

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Kashi

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in the Shiva Purana?

The verse elevates Kāśī as Shiva’s uniquely grace-filled kṣetra where karmic bondage (pāśa) is cut at the root by the Lord’s presence, making it a paradigmatic place for liberation-oriented worship in Shaiva thought.

How does this verse relate to the worship of the Linga or Saguna Shiva?

Kāśī is revered as a living field of Saguna Shiva—worship of Shiva in the form of the Liṅga there is presented as exceptionally potent, because the kṣetra itself is sanctified by Shiva’s abiding lordship (Pati) that accelerates purification and release from karmas.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is pilgrimage with focused Shiva-bhakti: daily Liṅga-pūjā, japa of the Pañcākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), and observance of purity disciplines—treating the visit as a sādhanā aimed at karmic purification and moksha.