Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 25

Devanagari script

देवदेव उवाच । लिंगं त्वनादिसंसिद्धमेतद्देवि शुभप्रदम् । आविर्भूतमिदानीं च त्वत्पितुः पुण्यगौरवात्

Transliteration

devadeva uvāca | liṃgaṃ tvanādisaṃsiddhametaddevi śubhapradam | āvirbhūtamidānīṃ ca tvatpituḥ puṇyagauravāt

Translation

Devadeva dit : Ce Liṅga, ô Déesse, est sans commencement et accompli de toute éternité, et il confère l’auspice. Pourtant, il s’est manifesté à présent grâce au splendide poids du mérite de ton père.

Word by Word

• देवदेवः: Devadeva (Lord of gods)
• देवदेवः: Karta (Speaker/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय—‘देवानां देवः’ (title; masculine nominative singular)

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriyā (Speech act)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद (3rd person singular perfect)

• लिङ्गम्: the liṅga
• लिङ्गम्: Karma/Prameya (Topic/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter accusative singular)

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेषार्थक निपात (particle: but/indeed)

• अनादिसंसिद्धम्: eternally accomplished (beginningless and perfected)
• अनादिसंसिद्धम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of liṅgam)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anādi (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃsiddha (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘अनादेः संसिद्धम्’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; विशेषण (neuter accusative singular)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Viśeṣaṇa (Determiner of liṅgam)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; सर्वनामविशेषण (neuter accusative singular)

• देवि: O Goddess
• देवि: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन (vocative singular)

• शुभप्रदम्: bestowing auspiciousness
• शुभप्रदम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of liṅgam)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śubha (प्रातिपदिक) + prada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘शुभं प्रददाति’ इति उपपद-तत्पुरुष; विशेषण (neuter accusative singular)

• आविर्भूतम्: has manifested/appeared
• आविर्भूतम्: Kriyā (Predicate adjective of liṅgam)
• Type: Verb
• Root: āvis (अव्यय/उपसर्गभाव) + √bhū (धातु) → āvirbhūta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/त); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विधेयविशेषण—‘प्रकटं जातम्’ (past participle: manifested)

• इदानीम्: now
• इदानीम्: Kāla (Time adjunct)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: idānīm (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time: now)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• त्वत्पितुः: of your father
• त्वत्पितुः: Sambandha (Genitive: whose merit)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; ‘तव पिता’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (masculine genitive singular)

• पुण्यगौरवात्: because of the weight/glory of (his) merit
• पुण्यगौरवात्: Hetu/Apādāna (Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक) + gaurava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th case), एकवचन; ‘पुण्यस्य गौरवात्’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; हेतौ अपादान (ablative singular: because of)

Speaker

Śiva (Devadeva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and sages

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva (Devadeva) speaks calmly to Devī: the liṅga is beginningless and ever-accomplished, auspicious by nature, yet now revealed due to the great merit of Devī’s father; the liṅga radiates subtle light within the golden prāsāda.

Characters & Entities

• Devadeva (Śiva)
• Devī (Umā/Pārvatī)
• Liṅga (Ratneśvara, context)
• Puṇya (merit)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The divine is eternally real, yet its presence becomes experientially manifest through accumulated merit and sacred connection.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī, where an eternally established liṅga is said to become manifest, reinforcing the kṣetra’s unique revelatory power.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it teaches the theology of anādi-saṃsiddha liṅga and the role of puṇya in sacred manifestation.