Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

स्निग्धाः समुन्नतास्ताम्रा वृत्ताः पादनखाः शुभाः

Transliteration

snigdhāḥ samunnatāstāmrā vṛttāḥ pādanakhāḥ śubhāḥ

Translation

Des ongles de pied lisses, légèrement relevés, d’une teinte cuivrée et bien arrondis sont tenus pour des marques de bon augure.

Word by Word

• स्निग्धाः: smooth, glossy
• स्निग्धाः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्निग्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: विशेषण; पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; (Adjective; Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

• समुन्नताः: raised, elevated
• समुन्नताः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्-उन्नत (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √नम्/उन्नत)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त-विशेषण; पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; (Past participial adjective; Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

• ताम्राः: coppery, reddish
• ताम्राः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ताम्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: विशेषण; पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; (Adjective; Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

• वृत्ताः: rounded
• वृत्ताः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृत्त (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √वृत्)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त-विशेषण; पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; (Past participial adjective; Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

• पादनखाः: toenails
• पादनखाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाद + नख (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (पादस्य नखाः); पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; (Genitive tatpuruṣa; Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

• शुभाः: auspicious, good
• शुभाः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: विशेषण; पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; (Adjective; Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context: Skanda to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A Kāśī setting where elder women or a learned narrator describes auspicious foot-marks: smooth, slightly raised, copper-tinged, rounded toenails—presented as maṅgala-lakṣaṇa.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Traditional dharma texts treat bodily signs as symbolic indicators of fortune; auspicious traits are praised as signs of harmony and благополучие (śubha).

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The teaching is situated in Kāśī-khaṇḍa, thus embedded in the sacred geography and spiritual authority of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), even though no single tīrtha is named in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual (snāna, dāna, japa, vrata) is prescribed in this verse; it is descriptive of auspicious marks.