Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 82

Devanagari script

ये दिव्यलोके पितरः पुण्यैर्देवत्वमागताः । ते ब्रह्मलोके गच्छंति तृप्तास्तीर्थे वृषध्वजे

Transliteration

ye divyaloke pitaraḥ puṇyairdevatvamāgatāḥ | te brahmaloke gacchaṃti tṛptāstīrthe vṛṣadhvaje

Translation

Those ancestral spirits (pitṛs) who, by their merits, have attained divine status in the heavenly realm—when they are satisfied at the sacred ford called Vṛṣadhvaja, they proceed onward to Brahmā’s world (Brahmaloka).

Word by Word

• ये: who (those who)
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धवाचक-सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• दिव्यलोके: in the divine world
• दिव्यलोके: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव्य-लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘दिव्यः लोकः’ इति कर्मधारय

• पितरः: the Pitṛs (ancestors)
• पितरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• पुण्यैः: by merits
• पुण्यैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• देवत्वम्: divinity, godhood
• देवत्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवत्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• आगताः: having attained
• आगताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-गम् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृत् (past participle/क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘आगत’ = having attained/come

• ते: they
• ते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; संकेत-सर्वनाम (demonstrative)

• ब्रह्मलोके: to/in Brahmaloka
• ब्रह्मलोके: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्म-लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (‘ब्रह्मणः लोकः’)

• गच्छन्ति: go
• गच्छन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन

• तृप्ताः: satisfied
• तृप्ताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तृप् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृत् (past participle/क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying ‘ते’)

• तीर्थे: at the sacred ford/place
• तीर्थे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• वृषध्वजे: at (the place of) Vṛṣadhvaja
• वृषध्वजे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृष-ध्वज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (‘वृषस्य ध्वजः’)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśī Khaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vṛṣadhvaja-tīrtha

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pitṛs / Pitāmahas (Forefathers) and, by extension, the audience of the Kāśī-māhātmya

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sacred ford on the Gaṅgā in Kāśī where a devotee offers tarpaṇa; luminous pitṛs receive satisfaction and ascend toward a radiant Brahmaloka, with a divine emblem of Vṛṣadhvaja presiding.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Brahmaloka
• Vṛṣadhvaja Tīrtha
• Kāśī (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Satisfying the ancestors at a powerful Kāśī tīrtha elevates their onward spiritual journey, showing the dharmic importance of pitṛ-sevā and tarpaṇa.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vṛṣadhvaja Tīrtha, a sacred ford associated with the ‘Bull-bannered’ Lord (Śiva) within the Kāśī sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit procedure is stated here, but the verse implies pitṛ-tarpaṇa/offerings that ‘satisfy’ the pitṛs at the tīrtha.