Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 65

Devanagari script

निगूढसंधी स्रस्ताग्रौ शुभावंसौ सुसंहतौ । वैधव्यदौ समुच्चाग्रौ निर्मांसावतिदुःखदौ

Transliteration

nigūḍhasaṃdhī srastāgrau śubhāvaṃsau susaṃhatau | vaidhavyadau samuccāgrau nirmāṃsāvatiduḥkhadau

Translation

When the joints are well concealed and the ends gently drooping, and when the shoulders are auspicious and compact, they are praised; but shoulders whose tips are excessively raised, or that are fleshless, are said to bestow widowhood and great suffering.

Word by Word

• nigūḍhasaṃdhī: having hidden joints
• nigūḍhasaṃdhī: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nigūḍhasaṃdhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• srastāgrau: having drooping tips/shoulders
• srastāgrau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: srastāgra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

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

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

• susaṃhatau: well-knit/compact
• susaṃhatau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: susaṃhata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• vaidhavyadau: giving widowhood
• vaidhavyadau: Vidheya (Predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vaidhavyada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• samuccāgrau: having very high tips
• samuccāgrau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: samuccāgra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• nirmāṃsau: fleshless
• nirmāṃsau: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nirmāṃsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• atiduḥkhadau: giving great pain
• atiduḥkhadau: Vidheya (Predicate)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: atiduḥkhada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A comparative tableau of shoulder forms: concealed joints and gently drooping ends shown as graceful; overly raised tips and fleshless shoulders shown with stark lighting, accompanied by symbolic storm-clouds (duḥkha) versus clear sky (śubha).

Characters & Entities

• Skanda
• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It reflects a karmic worldview where harmony and balance are associated with auspiciousness, while extremes are linked to suffering.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is the overarching sacred geography for the Kāśī Khaṇḍa, though this verse is not directly tied to a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse classifies bodily features as auspicious or inauspicious.