Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

कौस्तुभोद्भासितहृदः पीतकौशेयवाससः । ध्यानात्तेजोमयं विश्वं तेनैक्षि नृपसूनुना

Transliteration

kaustubhodbhāsitahṛdaḥ pītakauśeyavāsasaḥ | dhyānāttejomayaṃ viśvaṃ tenaikṣi nṛpasūnunā

Translation

La poitrine irradiée par le joyau Kaustubha, vêtu de soies jaunes, par la méditation le fils du roi vit l’univers tout entier comme fait de pure lumière.

Word by Word

• कौस्तुभ-उद्भासित-हृदः: whose heart is illumined by the Kaustubha jewel
• कौस्तुभ-उद्भासित-हृदः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कौस्तुभ (प्रातिपदिक) + उद्भासित (कृदन्त, क्त) + हृद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (कौस्तुभेन उद्भासितं हृदयं यस्य)

• पीत-कौशेय-वाससः: wearing yellow silk garments
• पीत-कौशेय-वाससः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पीत (प्रातिपदिक) + कौशेय (प्रातिपदिक) + वासस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (पीतं कौशेयं वासो यस्य)

• ध्यानात्: from/through meditation
• ध्यानात्: Hetu/Apadana (Cause/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ध्यान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; हेतौ/कारणे (ablative of cause)

• तेजोमयम्: made of radiance
• तेजोमयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तेजस् (प्रातिपदिक) + मयट् (तद्धित)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• विश्वम्: the universe
• विश्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• तेन: by him/with that
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• ऐक्षि: he saw/beheld
• ऐक्षि: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ईक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लुङ् (Aorist), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• नृप-सूनुना: by the king’s son
• नृप-सूनुना: Karana/Agent-associate (Instrumental of agent/सहकर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक) + सूनु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (नृपस्य सूनुः)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa norm: Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and sages (typical)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A child-prince in deep meditation beholds Viṣṇu: chest blazing with Kaustubha, draped in yellow silk; the surrounding cosmos appears as a field of pure light radiating outward from the deity’s presence.

Characters & Entities

• Govinda/Viṣṇu (implied by Kaustubha)
• Dhruva (as prince)
• Kaustubha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Meditation ripens into divine vision: reality is experienced as tejas (spiritual light) when devotion becomes steady.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The account belongs to Kāśī-kṣetra’s Māhātmya framework, presenting Kāśī as a power-field for dhyāna and darśana.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No formal rite; the verse emphasizes dhyāna (meditation) as the transformative practice.