Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 56

Devanagari script

त एवाभ्यस्तसद्योगा दत्तदानास्त एव हि । काश्यामिमानि लिंगानि यैर्दृष्टान्यपि दूरतः

Transliteration

ta evābhyastasadyogā dattadānāsta eva hi | kāśyāmimāni liṃgāni yairdṛṣṭānyapi dūrataḥ

Translation

Eux seuls ont vraiment pratiqué le juste yoga, et eux seuls ont vraiment fait l’aumône : ceux qui ont vu, fût-ce de loin, ces liṅgas à Kāśī.

Word by Word

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्; सर्वनाम

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• abhyasta-sad-yogāḥ: those whose good yoga is practiced/assiduous in right yoga
• abhyasta-sad-yogāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: abhyasta (abhi+as धातु + kta) + sat + yoga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्; कर्मधारय-समासः (abhyastaḥ sad-yogaḥ yeṣām)

• datta-dānāḥ: those who have given gifts
• datta-dānāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: datta (dā धातु + kta) + dāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्; कर्मधारयः (dattāni dānāni yeṣām)

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्; सर्वनाम

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात

• hi: certainly/for
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (assertive particle)

• kāśyām: in Kāśī
• kāśyām: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे सप्तमी (7th/Locative) एकवचनम्

• imāni: these
• imāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया बहुवचनम्; सर्वनाम

• liṃgāni: liṅgas
• liṃgāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया बहुवचनम्

• yaiḥ: by whom
• yaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे तृतीया बहुवचनम्; सम्बन्धक-सर्वनाम

• dṛṣṭāni: seen
• dṛṣṭāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dṛś (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: कर्मणि क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया बहुवचनम्

• api: even/also
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (concessive/also)

• dūrataḥ: from afar
• dūrataḥ: Adhikarana (Manner/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: dūratas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb)

Speaker

Śiva (Kāśī-māhātmya voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta) liṅgas

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sage interlocutor (contextual)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pilgrims on a road approaching Kāśī; in the distance, temple silhouettes and liṅga-shrines glow; some pilgrims fold hands upon first sight, suggesting ‘dūrataḥ darśana’ as transformative.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Liṅga
• Yoga
• Dāna

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī’s sanctity is so intense that even distant darśana of its liṅgas fulfills major spiritual disciplines.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī, specifically the network of sacred liṅgas within the city.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Darśana (seeing) of the liṅgas; yoga and charity are praised as being spiritually consummated through such Kāśī-darśana.