Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 44

Devanagari script

इति काशीप्रभावज्ञो जगच्चक्षुस्तमोनुदः । कृत्वा द्वादशधात्मानं काशीपुर्यां व्यवस्थितः

Transliteration

iti kāśīprabhāvajño jagaccakṣustamonudaḥ | kṛtvā dvādaśadhātmānaṃ kāśīpuryāṃ vyavasthitaḥ

Translation

Ainsi le Soleil—connaisseur de la puissance de Kāśī, œil du monde et chasseur des ténèbres—s’étant partagé en douze formes, prit demeure dans la cité de Kāśī.

Word by Word

• iti: thus
• iti: Avyaya (Discourse marker/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; वाक्यसमाप्त्यर्थ/उद्धरणसूचक (indeclinable; quotative)

• kāśī-prabhāva-jñaḥ: knower of Kāśī’s power
• kāśī-prabhāva-jñaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक) + prabhāva (प्रातिपदिक) + jña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (काश्याः प्रभावः तं जानाति); पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Masc., Nom., Sg.)

• jagat-cakṣuḥ: the eye of the world
• jagat-cakṣuḥ: Apposition (Samānādhikaraṇa/समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jagat (प्रातिपदिक) + cakṣus (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (जगतः चक्षुः); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Neuter, Nom., Sg.)

• tamaḥ-nudaḥ: dispeller of darkness
• tamaḥ-nudaḥ: Apposition (Samānādhikaraṇa/समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tamas (प्रातिपदिक) + nuda (कृत्: नुद् धातोः)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (तमः नुदति); पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Masc., Nom., Sg.)

• kṛtvā: having made
• kṛtvā: Kriya (Gerundial action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund); ‘कृत्वा’ = having made/done

• dvādaśadhā: in twelve forms/ways
• dvādaśadhā: Avyaya (Modifier/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: dvādaśadhā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (indeclinable; manner: in twelve ways)

• ātmānam: himself, the self
• ātmānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Masc., Acc., Sg.)

• kāśī-puryām: in the city of Kāśī
• kāśī-puryām: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक) + purī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (काश्यां पुरी); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन (Fem., Loc., Sg.)

• vyavasthitaḥ: was established, remained stationed
• vyavasthitaḥ: Kriya (State/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-ava-sthā (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle); पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Masc., Nom., Sg.)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśī-khaṇḍa context, Skanda to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvādaśa-Āditya-sthānas of Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ghaṭodbhava (contextual addressee in this passage)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sūrya, radiant and regal, stands above Kāśī and emanates twelve distinct solar emanations that descend to different quarters of the city, each becoming a shrine-presence; the city appears as a yantra-like sacred map.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Āditya (Sun)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Cosmic powers themselves become guardians of Kāśī, showing the kṣetra’s exceptional sanctity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśīpuri (Vārāṇasī), portrayed as the seat of the Sun’s twelvefold presence.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is stated; it introduces the theology of twelve solar forms established in Kāśī.