Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 53

Devanagari script

देवी पशुऽपतेः पश्चादमृतेश्वर सन्निधौ । स्नात्वा चैवामृते कूपे नमनीया प्रयत्नतः

Transliteration

devī paśu'pateḥ paścādamṛteśvara sannidhau | snātvā caivāmṛte kūpe namanīyā prayatnataḥ

Translation

Derrière le sanctuaire de Paśupati, près d’Amṛteśvara, qu’on se baigne dans le puits d’Amṛta; puis, avec application, qu’on se prosterne devant la Déesse avec vénération.

Word by Word

• देवी: the Goddess
• देवी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• पशुपतेः: of Paśupati
• पशुपतेः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पशुपति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• पश्चात्: after/behind
• पश्चात्: Adhikarana (Temporal/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पश्चात् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; काल/देशवाचक (after/behind)

• अमृतेश्वर: Amṛteśvara (Lord of Amṛta)
• अमृतेश्वर: Sambandha (Genitive-in-compound/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अमृत (प्रातिपदिक) + ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-समासः; (अमृतस्य ईश्वरः)

• सन्निधौ: in the presence/nearby
• सन्निधौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सन्निधि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: स्ना (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (gerund)

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

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

• अमृते: at/in Amṛta (place/name)
• अमृते: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अमृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• कूपे: in the well
• कूपे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• नमनीया: to be saluted
• नमनीया: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नम् (धातु) + अनीयर् (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृत्य-प्रत्ययान्त (अनीयर्) ‘ought to be bowed to’, स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• प्रयत्नतः: earnestly/with effort
• प्रयत्नतः: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रयत्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (ablatival adverb) ‘with effort/earnestly’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Amṛta-kūpa (Amṛta well) near Amṛteśvara, behind Paśupati

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim navigates narrow lanes behind the Paśupati shrine to Amṛteśvara; at a small stone-lined well (Amṛta-kūpa) they bathe, then bow to a nearby Devī shrine.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Paśupati
• Amṛteśvara
• Amṛta-kūpa
• Devī (Amṛteśvarī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī’s holiness is accessed through a lived pilgrimage—bathing, approaching Śiva’s presence, and reverently saluting the Devī.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Amṛteśvara-sannidhi and the Amṛta-kūpa, located in relation to the Paśupati shrine within Kāśī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna in the Amṛta-kūpa (sacred bath) followed by namaskāra (reverent bowing) to the Devī.