Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

शुद्धविद्यास्वरूपा च त्रिशक्तिः करुणात्मिका । आनंदामृतरूपा च शुद्धधर्मस्वरूपिणी

Transliteration

śuddhavidyāsvarūpā ca triśaktiḥ karuṇātmikā | ānaṃdāmṛtarūpā ca śuddhadharmasvarūpiṇī

Translation

She is the very form of pure knowledge; she is the threefold Power, compassion itself. She is nectar wrought of bliss, and the embodied form of stainless dharma.

Word by Word

• शुद्ध-विद्या-स्वरूपा: whose nature is pure knowledge
• शुद्ध-विद्या-स्वरूपा: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुद्ध (प्रातिपदिक) + विद्या (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वरूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास (whose nature is pure knowledge)

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

• त्रि-शक्तिः: the threefold power
• त्रि-शक्तिः: Pradhana (Predicate nominative/विशेष्य-निर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + शक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); द्विगु-समास (threefold power)

• करुणा-आत्मिका: compassionate by nature
• करुणा-आत्मिका: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: करुणा (प्रातिपदिक) + आत्मन्/आत्मिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष-समास (compassion as essence)

• आनन्द-अमृत-रूपा: of the form of bliss-nectar
• आनन्द-अमृत-रूपा: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आनन्द (प्रातिपदिक) + अमृत (प्रातिपदिक) + रूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष-समास (of the form of bliss-nectar)

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

• शुद्ध-धर्म-स्वरूपिणी: having the nature of pure dharma
• शुद्ध-धर्म-स्वरूपिणी: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुद्ध (प्रातिपदिक) + धर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वरूपिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष-समास; स्वरूपिन्-प्रातिपदिक (possessing the nature of)

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgā (as Śuddha-vidyā-svarūpiṇī)

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Viṣṇu / divine interlocutor

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Gaṅgā appears as a radiant goddess standing upon a flowing river-lotus, holding a kamaṇḍalu and rosary, surrounded by three emanating śakti-auras; her gaze conveys karuṇā and serene knowledge.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Triśakti (Icchā-Jñāna-Kriyā)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True purity is aligned with knowledge, compassion, and dharma—qualities personified by the Gaṅgā.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Gaṅgā in Kāśī, praised as the living embodiment of śuddha-dharma and śuddha-vidyā.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse supplies the devotional framework for worship and reverent approach to Gaṅgā-darśana and Gaṅgā-snāna.