Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 85

Devanagari script

प्रणवादि चतुर्थ्यंतैर्नमस्कार समन्वितैः । प्रत्येकमुच्चरन्नाम दृष्ट्वादृष्ट्वा दिवाकरम्

Transliteration

praṇavādi caturthyaṃtairnamaskāra samanvitaiḥ | pratyekamuccarannāma dṛṣṭvādṛṣṭvā divākaram

Translation

En commençant par Oṁ et en finissant par le datif (—āya), accompagné d’actes de salutation révérencieuse, qu’on prononce chaque Nom à son tour, en contemplant sans cesse le Soleil, le Faiseur du jour.

Word by Word

• praṇava-ādi: beginning with praṇava (Oṃ)
• praṇava-ādi: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: praṇava (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः (करणे/सह), बहुवचनम्; विशेषणम्—‘प्रणव-आदि’ (beginning with Oṃ)

• caturthyaṃtaiḥ: with (mantras) ending in the dative (4th case)
• caturthyaṃtaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: caturthyaṃta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्; ‘चतुर्थी-अन्त’ = ending in dative case; विशेषणम्

• namaskāra-samanvitaiḥ: accompanied by salutations
• namaskāra-samanvitaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: namaskāra (प्रातिपदिक) + samanvita (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्; ‘नमस्कार-समन्वित’ = accompanied by salutations; विशेषणम्

• pratyekam: each time / individually
• pratyekam: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pratyeka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययम्; क्रियाविशेषणम् (adverb)

• uccaran: uttering
• uccaran: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: uccar (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्तः (शतृ), परस्मैपदी; प्रथमा-एकवचनम्, पुंलिङ्गम्; ‘उच्चरन्’ = uttering

• nāma: the name
• nāma: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; कर्मपदम् (object)

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Kriya (Gerundial/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययम् (absolutive/gerund); ‘having seen’

• adṛṣṭvā: having not seen / after averting the gaze
• adṛṣṭvā: Kriya (Gerundial/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययम्; नकारार्थक-उपसर्गेण ‘अ-’ (negation): ‘having not seen / after looking away’

• divākaram: the Sun
• divākaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: divākara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (Ganga-ghāṭa sandhyā)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis/śaunaka-ādi audience (typical Purāṇic setting)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee on a Kāśī ghat faces the rising Sun, hands in añjali, softly uttering Oṁ…—āya names in sequence; the Ganga glitters, bells and conch faintly heard, the city’s temples silhouetted.

Characters & Entities

• Divākara (Sūrya)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotion becomes complete when mantra-recitation is paired with humility (namaskāra) and steady attention on the deity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader teaching belongs to Kāśī in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa, where daily rites gain special merit.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Recite each Name of Sūrya with Oṁ-preface and dative ending (—āya), accompanied by salutations while repeatedly beholding the Sun.