Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 47

Devanagari script

तत्र ये पापकर्तारस्तेषां शास्ता त्वमेव हि । शुभाशुभं न तत्कर्म चित्रगुप्तो लिखिष्यति

Transliteration

tatra ye pāpakartārasteṣāṃ śāstā tvameva hi | śubhāśubhaṃ na tatkarma citragupto likhiṣyati

Translation

Là, quels que soient les faiseurs de péché, toi seul seras leur châtieur ; et en ce lieu, Citragupta n’inscrira pas ces actes comme favorables ou défavorables.

Word by Word

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, देशवाचक (locative adverb)

• ye: those who
• ye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; सम्बन्ध-प्रत्यय (relative pronoun)

• pāpakartāraḥ: doers of sin
• pāpakartāraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa-kartṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (पापं करोति इति)

• teṣām: of them
• teṣām: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• śāstā: punisher; ruler
• śāstā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāstṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tvam: you
• tvam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• eva: alone; indeed
• eva: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अवधारणार्थक-निपात

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निश्चय/हेतु-निपात

• śubhāśubham: good and bad (deeds)
• śubhāśubham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śubha-aśubha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (शुभं च अशुभं च)

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

• tat: that
• tat: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; अत्र ‘तत् कर्म’ इति विशेषण

• karma: deed; action
• karma: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• citraguptaḥ: Chitragupta
• citraguptaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: citragupta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• likhiṣyati: will write/record
• likhiṣyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √likh (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकार (Simple Future), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

Speaker

Śiva (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Kālarāja / Yama

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A symbolic scene: Citragupta closes his ledger outside Kāśī’s boundary while Yama stands at the city gate as sole adjudicator; Kāśī glows within, suggesting a different law of grace and discipline.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Kālabhairava
• Citragupta

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī is portrayed as a unique sacred realm where Bhairava administers discipline and karmic accounting is treated as exceptional.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī, described as operating under Bhairava’s direct governance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse concerns the moral-judicial order (śāsana) within Kāśī.