Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 49

Devanagari script

अष्टादश सुविद्यासु मीमांसातिगरीयसी । ततोपि तर्कशास्त्राणि पुराणं तेभ्य एव च

Transliteration

aṣṭādaśa suvidyāsu mīmāṃsātigarīyasī | tatopi tarkaśāstrāṇi purāṇaṃ tebhya eva ca

Translation

Parmi les dix-huit disciplines nobles, la Mīmāṃsā est la plus pondérée ; plus élevés encore sont les traités de logique, et plus élevé qu’eux est le Purāṇa.

Word by Word

• अष्टादश: eighteen
• अष्टादश: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अष्टादश (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्यावाचक (numeral), अव्ययवत् प्रयोगः; द्विगु-समासः (अष्ट + दश) = 18

• सु-विद्यासु: among the good/lofty sciences
• सु-विद्यासु: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + विद्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः/कर्मधारयभावः (सु-विद्या = उत्तमा विद्या)

• मीमांसा-अति-गरीयसी: Mīmāṃsā is exceedingly superior
• मीमांसा-अति-गरीयसी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मीमांसा (प्रातिपदिक) + अति (अव्यय) + गरीयस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; ‘गरीयसी’ = गरीयस्-तरा/तमभावे स्त्रीरूपम् (comparative ‘heavier/greater’); समासः—तत्पुरुषः (मीमांसायाः अति गरीयसी)

• ततः: than that; thereafter
• ततः: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; तस्मात्/ततः = ‘thereafter/than that’ (ablatival adverb)

• अपि: even; also
• अपि: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/अवधारणार्थक

• तर्क-शास्त्राणि: the treatises on logic
• तर्क-शास्त्राणि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तर्क (प्रातिपदिक) + शास्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (तर्कस्य शास्त्राणि)

• पुराणम्: the Purāṇa
• पुराणम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुराण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• तेभ्यः: from/than those
• तेभ्यः: Apadana (Ablative/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/पञ्चमी), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• एव: indeed; alone
• एव: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (emphasis)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī as Vidyā-kṣetra (learning sanctity)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A scholarly assembly in Kāśī: palm-leaf manuscripts of the eighteen vidyās stacked; Mīmāṃsā and tarka texts placed below a larger illuminated Purāṇa manuscript; a teacher gestures toward the Purāṇa as the crown of learning.

Characters & Entities

• Purāṇa
• Mīmāṃsā
• Tarka-śāstra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Learning is valued, yet Purāṇic revelation is presented as especially potent for dharma because it unites doctrine with lived sacred practice.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader discourse belongs to Kāśī-khaṇḍa, where scriptural praise supports the lived pilgrimage-culture of Kāśī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is prescribed here; it establishes a scriptural hierarchy supporting later prescriptions (e.g., Gāyatrī upāsanā).