Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 84

Devanagari script

एवमुक्तस्ततः शंभुर्विष्णुमेतदुदाहरत् । ब्रह्मणस्तु शिरश्छिन्नमंगु्ल्यग्रनखेन ह

Transliteration

evamuktastataḥ śaṃbhurviṣṇumetadudāharat | brahmaṇastu śiraśchinnamaṃgu्lyagranakhena ha

Translation

Ainsi interpellé, Śambhu expliqua alors ceci à Viṣṇu : «En vérité, la tête de Brahmā fut tranchée par l’ongle au bout de mon doigt».

Word by Word

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (adverb)

• उक्तः: having been spoken to / addressed
• उक्तः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वच् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle)

• ततः: then
• ततः: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: देश/कालवाचक-अव्यय (ablatival adverb: 'then/from there')

• शंभुः: Śambhu (Śiva)
• शंभुः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शंभु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन

• विष्णुम्: Viṣṇu
• विष्णुम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विष्णु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन; demonstrative pronoun

• उदाहरत्: said, uttered
• उदाहरत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उद् + आ + हृ (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/past), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ब्रह्मणः: of Brahmā
• ब्रह्मणः: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case/genitive), एकवचन

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/विरोधार्थक-अव्यय (particle: 'but/indeed')

• शिरः: head
• शिरः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन

• छिन्नम्: cut off
• छिन्नम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: छिद् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle)

• अङ्गुल्यग्रनखेन: with the tip-nail of (his) finger
• अङ्गुल्यग्रनखेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अङ्गुली + अग्र + नख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd case/करण), एकवचन; षष्ठी/सप्तमी-तत्पुरुष-समासभावः (अङ्गुल्याः अग्रे नखः)

• ह: indeed
• ह: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ह (अव्यय)
• Form: पादपूरण/निपात (emphatic particle)

Speaker

Śiva (Śambhu) speaking to Viṣṇu

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Audience of Kāśīkhaṇḍa; in-scene: Śiva explaining to Viṣṇu

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śambhu responds: Brahmā’s head was cut off by the nail-tip of his finger—an image of effortless yet terrible power; the moment is stark and revelatory.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Śambhu)
• Viṣṇu
• Brahmā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇic narrative frames even divine beings as upholding moral order through acknowledgment of acts and acceptance of expiatory discipline.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

While this verse states the cause, the broader Kāśīkhaṇḍa context links the ensuing vow and its resolution to Kāśī’s liberating sacred sphere.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse introduces the etiological basis for an expiatory vrata associated with the kapāla/bhikṣā motif (detailed in surrounding verses).