Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 53

Devanagari script

न चाटा नैव वाचाटा वंचका नो न हिंसकाः । न पाषंडा न वै भंडा न रंडा न च शौंडिकाः

Transliteration

na cāṭā naiva vācāṭā vaṃcakā no na hiṃsakāḥ | na pāṣaṃḍā na vai bhaṃḍā na raṃḍā na ca śauṃḍikāḥ

Translation

There were no flatterers, no loud-mouthed boasters, no deceivers and no violent men; no pāṣaṇḍas (heretics), no buffoons, no abandoned women, and no drunkards.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• cāṭāḥ: flatterers
• cāṭāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cāṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक (indeed/just)

• vācāṭāḥ: chatterers
• vācāṭāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vācāṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• vaṃcakāḥ: deceivers
• vaṃcakāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaṃcaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• no: nor
• no: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na u (अव्यय; न + उ/ओ)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेधार्थक-निपात (nor)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• hiṃsakāḥ: violent people
• hiṃsakāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hiṃsaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• pāṣaṇḍāḥ: heretics
• pāṣaṇḍāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāṣaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चयार्थक/खल्वर्थक (indeed)

• bhaṇḍāḥ: buffoons; jesters
• bhaṇḍāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• raṇḍāḥ: widows (as a social category)
• raṇḍāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: raṇḍā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक (and)

• śauṇḍikāḥ: drunkards
• śauṇḍikāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śauṇḍika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: pilgrimage-inquirer within the Purāṇic frame

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A peaceful Kāśī neighborhood: people speak gently, no quarrels, no drunkenness; a visible contrast is implied—temples and learning replace vice and noise.

Characters & Entities

• Divodāsa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A society rooted in dharma naturally abandons deceit, cruelty, and degrading addictions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī’s holiness is reinforced by portraying a realm purified of social vices in its sacred narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual is prescribed; it underscores ethical restraint—truthfulness, non-violence, and sobriety.