Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

उपवीतक्रमेण स्यात्कार्पासं शाणमाविकम् । त्रिवृदूर्ध्ववृतं तच्च भवेदायुर्विवृद्धये

Transliteration

upavītakrameṇa syātkārpāsaṃ śāṇamāvikam | trivṛdūrdhvavṛtaṃ tacca bhavedāyurvivṛddhaye

Translation

In the proper order, the upavīta (sacred thread) should be of cotton, then of flax, then of wool. It should be threefold and twisted upward; this is said to increase longevity.

Word by Word

• upavīta-krameṇa: according to the upavīta procedure
• upavīta-krameṇa: Adhikarana (Manner/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: upavīta (प्रातिपदिक) + krama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘according to the upavīta order/mode’ (instrumental of manner)

• syāt: should be
• syāt: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (अस्)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• kārpāsam: cotton (made)
• kārpāsam: Karta/Karma (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kārpāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण: ‘cotton (made)’

• śāṇam: hemp/śāṇa (made)
• śāṇam: Karta/Karma (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण: ‘hemp/śāṇa (made)’

• āvikam: woollen
• āvikam: Karta/Karma (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: āvika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण: ‘woollen’

• trivṛt-ūrdhva-vṛtam: three-stranded and turned upward
• trivṛt-ūrdhva-vṛtam: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: trivṛt (प्रातिपदिक) + ūrdhva (प्रातिपदिक) + vṛta (कृदन्त; √vṛ (वृ) क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (बहुपद): ‘three-stranded, upward-turned/arranged’

• tat: that (thread)
• tat: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction)

• bhavet: should become; should be
• bhavet: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (भू)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• āyuḥ-vivṛddhaye: for the increase of lifespan
• āyuḥ-vivṛddhaye: Sampradana (Purpose/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āyus (प्रातिपदिक) + vivṛddhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘for the increase of lifespan’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis (frame; not explicit)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A dvija receives or adjusts a threefold, upward-twisted upavīta; cotton, flax, and wool threads are shown in sequence; a subtle aura suggests ‘āyus-vivṛddhi’.

Characters & Entities

• Upavīta

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred symbols are not mere ornament; properly observed saṃskāra forms support disciplined, life-sustaining dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The instruction is part of Kāśī Khaṇḍa’s dharma-teaching milieu connected with Kāśī, without naming a specific tirtha in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It prescribes the materials and threefold, upward-twisted form of the upavīta.