Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

विभूतिधारिणो भक्त्या रुद्रसूक्तजपप्रियान् । लिंगाराधनसंसक्ताञ्छिवनामकृतादरान्

Transliteration

vibhūtidhāriṇo bhaktyā rudrasūktajapapriyān | liṃgārādhanasaṃsaktāñchivanāmakṛtādarān

Translation

They bore vibhūti, the sacred ash, with devotion, delighting in the japa of the Rudra-hymn; absorbed in worship of the liṅga, they revered with care the Name of Śiva.

Word by Word

• विभूतिधारिणः: those who bear sacred ash
• विभूतिधारिणः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विभूति (प्रातिपदिक) + धारिन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; विशेषण—‘धारिणः’ (धृ धातोः, णिनि-प्रत्यय)

• भक्त्या: with devotion
• भक्त्या: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; साधन/हेतु-भावे

• रुद्रसूक्तजपप्रियान्: fond of reciting the Rudra-hymn
• रुद्रसूक्तजपप्रियान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रुद्र (प्रातिपदिक) + सूक्त (प्रातिपदिक) + जप (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रिय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; विशेषण—‘जपप्रिय’ = जपे प्रियः

• लिङ्गाराधनसंसक्तान्: attached to worship of the liṅga
• लिङ्गाराधनसंसक्तान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक) + आराधन (प्रातिपदिक) + संसक्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; ‘संसक्त’ = सम्+सञ्ज्/ससज् (क्त) — आसक्त/लग्न

• शिवनामकृतादरान्: showing reverence for the name ‘Śiva’
• शिवनामकृतादरान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शिव (प्रातिपदिक) + नाम (प्रातिपदिक) + कृत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + आदर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; ‘कृतादर’ = आदरः कृतः येषाम् (भावे)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; likely Skanda speaking within Kāśīkhaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Viśveśvara (Kāśī)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrimage-inquirer audience (traditionally sages/śaunaka-type assembly)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A group of Kāśī devotees with tripuṇḍra and vibhūti, seated near a liṅga shrine, softly chanting Rudra-hymns while offering water and bilva leaves; lamps flicker and incense curls upward.

Characters & Entities

• Vibhūti (sacred ash)
• Rudra-sūkta
• Liṅga
• Śiva-nāma

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotion is expressed through embodied practice—sacred ash, mantra-japa, liṅga worship, and reverence for Śiva’s name.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No particular tīrtha is named in this verse; it continues the Naimiṣāraṇya assembly context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Rudra-sūkta japa, liṅgārādhana (liṅga worship), and the devotional bearing of vibhūti are explicitly described.