Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 37

Devanagari script

तीर्थं हिरण्यगर्भाख्यं तद्याम्ये सर्वपापहृत् । तत्र स्नातो हिरण्येन मुच्यते न कदाचन

Transliteration

tīrthaṃ hiraṇyagarbhākhyaṃ tadyāmye sarvapāpahṛt | tatra snāto hiraṇyena mucyate na kadācana

Translation

To the south is the tīrtha called Hiraṇyagarbha, which removes all sins. One who bathes there is never again bound by ‘gold’—the fetters of wealth and attachment.

Word by Word

• tīrtham: a tīrtha
• tīrtham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• hiraṇyagarbha-ākhyam: called ‘Hiraṇyagarbha’
• hiraṇyagarbha-ākhyam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hiraṇyagarbha (प्रातिपदिक) + ākhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः — ‘हिरण्यगर्भ इति आख्या यस्य’ (named Hiraṇyagarbha)

• tad-yāmye: to the south of that
• tad-yāmye: Desha (Location/देश)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम) + yāmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समासः; ‘तस्य याम्ये (दक्षिणदिशि)’ इति अर्थे; अव्ययवत् — ‘to the south of that’

• sarva-pāpa-hṛt: remover of all sins
• sarva-pāpa-hṛt: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + hṛt (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः — ‘सर्वपापं हरति’ (sin-removing)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Desha (Location/देश)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक

• snātaḥ: having bathed
• snātaḥ: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √snā (धातु) + ta (कृत्)
• Form: क्त-कृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• hiraṇyena: by/with gold
• hiraṇyena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hiraṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• mucyate: is freed, is released
• mucyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √muc (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोगः (passive)

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

• kadācana: ever (with na: never)
• kadācana: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kadācana (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (temporal adverb) — ‘ever/at any time’ (न-सम्बन्धे ‘never’)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hiraṇyagarbha Tīrtha

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A southern ghat/kund marked Hiraṇyagarbha: a pilgrim bathes as dark stains (sins) dissolve into the water; nearby, a pile of gold coins transforms into a broken chain, symbolizing release from wealth-fetters; a subtle cosmic golden-egg motif appears in the sky, linking name to primordiality.

Characters & Entities

• Hiraṇyagarbha Tīrtha
• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purification is not only moral cleansing; it also means freedom from binding attachments—especially to wealth and possessiveness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Hiraṇyagarbha Tīrtha, located to the south in the described Kāśī tīrtha circuit.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna at Hiraṇyagarbha Tīrtha for sin-removal and release from bondage to wealth/attachment.