Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

लीलानर्मसुसाभिज्ञाः सुप्रलापेषु पंडिताः । यूनां मनांसि सततं स्वैर्हावै रमयंत्यमूः

Transliteration

līlānarmasusābhijñāḥ supralāpeṣu paṃḍitāḥ | yūnāṃ manāṃsi satataṃ svairhāvai ramayaṃtyamūḥ

Translation

Versées dans les arts du jeu et de la plaisanterie amoureuse, savantes en propos délicats, ces Apsarās réjouissent sans cesse l’esprit des jeunes hommes par leurs gestes gracieux et leur coquetterie.

Word by Word

• līlā-narma-su-abhijñāḥ: very skilled in playful jest
• līlā-narma-su-abhijñāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: līlā (प्रातिपदिक) + narma (प्रातिपदिक) + su- (उपसर्ग/उपपद) + abhijña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (उपपद-तत्पुरुषः), अर्थः ‘लीलानर्मणि सु-अभिज्ञ’ (very skilled in playful jest)

• su-pralāpeṣu: in pleasant conversations
• su-pralāpeṣu: Adhikaraṇa (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: su- (उपसर्ग/उपपद) + pralāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (उपपद), ‘सु-प्रलाप’ = sweet/pleasant talk

• paṃḍitāḥ: learned (women)
• paṃḍitāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paṃḍita (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• yūnām: of young men
• yūnām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuvan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• manāṃsi: minds
• manāṃsi: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन

• satataṃ: always
• satataṃ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: satatam (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययीभावप्राय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• svaiḥ: with their own
• svaiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; ‘स्व’ = their own

• hāvaiḥ: coquettish gestures
• hāvaiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; ‘हाव’ = coquettish gestures

• ramayanti: they delight
• ramayanti: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ram (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; causative sense ‘to delight’ (णिच्-प्रयोगः: रमयति)

• amūḥ: those (women)
• amūḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Apsarās in a celestial pavilion, skilled in playful gestures and refined speech, captivating youthful onlookers; the mood is elegant, perfumed, and subtly dangerous—beauty as enchantment.

Characters & Entities

• Apsarāḥ (celestial nymphs)
• yūnaḥ (young men)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It portrays the power of sensory charm and refined speech to captivate the mind—an implicit reminder in Purāṇic dharma to cultivate discernment and not be carried away by mere allure.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it sits within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa narrative frame where Kāśī’s greatness is taught through broader cosmological descriptions.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this verse is descriptive (varṇana) rather than prescriptive (vidhi).