Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 64

Devanagari script

अबद्धावनतौ स्कंधावदीर्घावकृशौ शुभौ । वक्रौ स्थूलौ च रोमाढ्यौ प्रेष्य वैधव्यसूचकौ

Transliteration

abaddhāvanatau skaṃdhāvadīrghāvakṛśau śubhau | vakrau sthūlau ca romāḍhyau preṣya vaidhavyasūcakau

Translation

If the shoulders are relaxed and gently sloping—neither constrained nor raised—long and slender, they are auspicious; but if they are crooked, thick, and overly hairy, they indicate servitude and are regarded as signs pointing toward widowhood.

Word by Word

• abaddhāvanatau: unbound and bent down
• abaddhāvanatau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: abaddhāvanata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• skandhau: two shoulders
• skandhau: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: skandha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• adīrghau: not long
• adīrghau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: adīrgha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• akṛśau: not thin
• akṛśau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: akṛśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• śubhau: auspicious
• śubhau: Vidheya (Predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śubha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• vakrau: crooked
• vakrau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vakra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• sthūlau: thick/stout
• sthūlau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sthūla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• ca: and
• ca: null
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction

• romāḍhyau: rich in hair/hairy
• romāḍhyau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: romāḍhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• preṣya: servitude/slavery
• preṣya: null
• Type: Noun
• Root: preṣya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Stem form (in compound context)

• vaidhavyasūcakau: indicative of widowhood
• vaidhavyasūcakau: Vidheya (Predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vaidhavyasūcaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Instruction on shoulder-signs: auspicious shoulders shown as gently sloping and graceful; inauspicious as crooked, thick, and overly hairy, with symbolic cues of bondage (servitude) and a lone lamp (widowhood motif) in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Skanda
• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Traditional dharma texts connect bodily traits with life outcomes, emphasizing prudence and the belief that karma manifests in observable patterns.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The setting is the Kāśī Khaṇḍa (Vārāṇasī-mahātmya context), but the verse itself is not a tīrtha-glorification passage.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is an evaluative description of bodily marks.