Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 77

Devanagari script

नवावश्यककर्माणि कार्याणि प्रतिवासरम् । स्नानं संध्या जपो होमः स्वाध्यायो देवतार्चनम्

Transliteration

navāvaśyakakarmāṇi kāryāṇi prativāsaram | snānaṃ saṃdhyā japo homaḥ svādhyāyo devatārcanam

Translation

Chaque jour, on doit accomplir les neuf actes obligatoires : le bain rituel, le culte du sandhyā (prière de l’aube et du crépuscule), la récitation des mantras (japa), l’offrande au feu sacré (homa), l’étude des Écritures (svādhyāya) et l’adoration des divinités.

Word by Word

• नव: nine
• नव: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नव (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्या; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनार्थे (numeral ‘nine’, agreeing with plural)

• आवश्यककर्माणि: necessary duties
• आवश्यककर्माणि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आवश्यक + कर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (neuter nominative plural)

• कार्याणि: to be performed
• कार्याणि: Vidhyartha (Obligation/विध्यर्थ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कार्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (neuter nominative plural adjective: ‘to be done’)

• प्रतिवासरम्: every day
• प्रतिवासरम्: Kala-adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रति + वासर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावसमास; द्वितीया-एकवचनरूपेण अव्ययवत् (adverbial: ‘each day’)

• स्नानम्: bathing
• स्नानम्: Karta (Item in list/कर्ता-निर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter nom/acc sg)

• संध्या: twilight worship (sandhyā)
• संध्या: Karta (Item in list/कर्ता-निर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संध्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (feminine nominative singular)

• जपः: recitation; mantra repetition
• जपः: Karta (Item in list/कर्ता-निर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (masculine nominative singular)

• होमः: fire offering
• होमः: Karta (Item in list/कर्ता-निर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: होम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (masculine nominative singular)

• स्वाध्यायः: self-study; Vedic study
• स्वाध्यायः: Karta (Item in list/कर्ता-निर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्वाध्याय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (masculine nominative singular)

• देवतार्चनम्: worship of deities
• देवतार्चनम्: Karta (Item in list/कर्ता-निर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता + अर्चन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter nom/acc sg)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgā in Kāśī / Kāśī-kṣetra

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At a Gaṅgā ghāṭ in Kāśī at dawn: a devotee completes snāna, performs sandhyā with arghya to the rising sun, then sits for japa; nearby a small homa-kunda smolders; later, he reads from a palm-leaf text and offers flowers at a shrine.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Daily discipline (nitya-karmas) sustains purity, devotion, and continuity of dharma in household life.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader frame is Kāśī Khaṇḍa; this verse emphasizes daily practice rather than a particular pilgrimage spot.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Nitya-karmas: snāna, sandhyā, japa, homa, svādhyāya, and devatā-arcana (as part of a ninefold daily set).