Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 94

Devanagari script

नीरुक्छरीरसंपत्तिर्निवेदे किं नु कारणम् । अनवाप्ताभिलाषाणां वैराग्यं जायते नृणाम्

Transliteration

nīrukcharīrasaṃpattirnivede kiṃ nu kāraṇam | anavāptābhilāṣāṇāṃ vairāgyaṃ jāyate nṛṇām

Translation

You possess an unimpaired body and every advantage—what, then, is the cause of your discontent? For in people, dispassion generally arises when desired aims are not attained.

Word by Word

• nīrukcharīra-saṃpattiḥ: the prosperity/condition of a body without disease
• nīrukcharīra-saṃpattiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nīrukcha (प्रातिपदिक) + śarīra (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃpatti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative, 1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/निर्देश-तत्पुरुषः—‘nīrukcha-śarīrasya saṃpattiḥ’ इति भावः

• nivede: in the statement/report (in the submission)
• nivede: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niveda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी (Locative, 7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); प्रश्नवाचक-सर्वनाम (interrogative pronoun)

• nu: indeed/then (interrogative emphasis)
• nu: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle), प्रश्न/अनुनयार्थक-निपात (interrogative/emphatic particle)

• kāraṇam: the cause
• kāraṇam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative, 1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• anavāpta-abhilāṣāṇām: of those whose desires are unfulfilled
• anavāpta-abhilāṣāṇām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: an-avāpta (कृदन्त; √āp/avāp ‘to obtain’ + नञ्) + abhilāṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), षष्ठी (Genitive, 6th), बहुवचन (Plural); कर्मधारयः—‘anavāptāḥ abhilāṣāḥ yeṣām’ इति (unfulfilled desires)

• vairāgyam: dispassion
• vairāgyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vairāgya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative, 1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• jāyate: arises/is born
• jāyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), आत्मनेपद (Ātmanepada)

• nṛṇām: of men/people
• nṛṇām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), षष्ठी (Genitive, 6th), बहुवचन (Plural)

Speaker

Sages

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: (contextual interlocutors within Kāśīkhaṇḍa)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A compassionate elder questions a well-endowed yet dissatisfied prince/child, highlighting the paradox of worldly prosperity and inner discontent.

Characters & Entities

• sages
• Dhruva

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly comfort does not guarantee peace; true vairāgya is deeper than mere frustration and must be examined with discernment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named tīrtha; the verse is ethical-reflective within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a doctrinal observation about human dispassion.