Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

स्वामिनापि जगद्धात्री पुरतो मंदराचले । इदमेव पुरा प्रोक्तं काशीनिर्वाणजन्मभूः

Transliteration

svāmināpi jagaddhātrī purato maṃdarācale | idameva purā proktaṃ kāśīnirvāṇajanmabhūḥ

Translation

Même le Seigneur, devant Jagaddhātrī sur le mont Mandara, a jadis proclamé ceci : Kāśī est le lieu de naissance du nirvāṇa, la délivrance ultime.

Word by Word

• svāminā: by the Lord / master
• svāminā: Kartr (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svāmin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• api: also / even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/अपि-कार (particle: ‘also/even’)

• jagad-dhātrī: the sustainer of the world
• jagad-dhātrī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jagat (प्रातिपदिक) + dhātrī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (‘jagataḥ dhātrī’)

• purataḥ: in front (of)
• purataḥ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: ‘in front of’)

• maṃdara-acale: on Mount Mandara
• maṃdara-acale: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maṃdara (प्रातिपदिक) + acala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (‘maṃdaraḥ acalaḥ’)

• idam: this
• idam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; निर्देशार्थ सर्वनाम

• eva: indeed / only
• eva: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (particle of emphasis)

• purā: formerly
• purā: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time: ‘formerly’)

• proktam: was spoken
• proktam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra + vac (धातु) → prokta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP)

• kāśī-nirvāṇa-janma-bhūḥ: Kāśī, the birthplace/ground of liberation
• kāśī-nirvāṇa-janma-bhūḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक) + nirvāṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + janma (प्रातिपदिक) + bhū (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (सम्बन्धार्थ): ‘kāśī (as) nirvāṇasya janmabhūḥ’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (as Nirvāṇa-janmabhū)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On Mount Mandara, the Lord speaks solemnly before Jagaddhātrī (a mother-goddess form), while a visionary overlay shows Kāśī as a luminous city—suggesting that nirvāṇa ‘arises’ there like a dawn.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Jagaddhātrī (Goddess)
• Mandara (Mount Mandara)
• Nirvāṇa
• Svāmin (Lord—Śiva implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī’s liberating power is ancient and authoritative—proclaimed by the Lord himself—making it the ‘source-ground’ of nirvāṇa.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is directly glorified as nirvāṇa-janmabhūḥ, the ground from which liberation arises.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific ritual is mentioned; the verse offers testimonial authority for Kāśī’s mokṣa-bestowing status.