Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 30

Devanagari script

स्वभावमधुरां वाणीं वक्तुं समुपचक्रमे । सापत्नं प्रतिघं त्यक्त्वा राजनीतिविदांवरा

Transliteration

svabhāvamadhurāṃ vāṇīṃ vaktuṃ samupacakrame | sāpatnaṃ pratighaṃ tyaktvā rājanītividāṃvarā

Translation

That foremost knower of royal ethics began to speak in her naturally gentle voice, setting aside the sting of rivalry and the impulse to retaliate.

Word by Word

• स्वभाव-मधुराम्: naturally sweet
• स्वभाव-मधुराम्: Karma (Object-qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्वभाव (प्रातिपदिक) + मधुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः (तत्पुरुष; स्वभावेन मधुरा); स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन; ‘वाणीम्’ विशेषणम्

• वाणीम्: speech/voice
• वाणीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन

• वक्तुम्: to speak
• वक्तुम्: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive); प्रयोजनार्थ (to speak)

• समुपचक्रमे: began/undertook
• समुपचक्रमे: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-उप-क्रम् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परिपूर्णभूत/Perfect); प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपदम्

• सापत्नम्: rivalry (co-wife enmity)
• सापत्नम्: Karma (Object-qualifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सापत्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन; ‘प्रतिघम्’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• प्रतिघम्: hostility/obstruction
• प्रतिघम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रतिघ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन

• त्यक्त्वा: having abandoned
• त्यक्त्वा: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/Adverbial action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: त्यज् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund); पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (having abandoned)

• राजनीति-विदाम्-वरā: the best among knowers of polity
• राजनीति-विदाम्-वरā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजनीति (प्रातिपदिक) + विद् (धातु; कृदन्त ‘विद्’→ ‘विद्/विद्वस्’ sense) + वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: राजनीतिविदाम् + वरā); स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (contextually Skanda in Kāśīkhaṇḍa discourse)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sunīti begins speaking with naturally sweet voice; her face shows restraint, having set aside jealousy and the sting of co-wife rivalry; the child listens, still tense but attentive.

Characters & Entities

• Sunīti

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sweet speech and non-retaliation are marks of higher nīti; restraint preserves dharma even amid rivalry.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśīkhaṇḍa framework glorifies Kāśī, but this verse primarily teaches conduct within a royal household.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the instruction is ethical—renouncing hostile reaction and speaking gently.