Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 64

Devanagari script

मुने न मे प्रियस्तद्वद्दीक्षितो मम पूजकः । यादृक्प्रियतरः सत्यं काशीस्तवन लालसः

Transliteration

mune na me priyastadvaddīkṣito mama pūjakaḥ | yādṛkpriyataraḥ satyaṃ kāśīstavana lālasaḥ

Translation

Ô sage, ni l’initié ni celui qui m’adore ne m’est aussi cher que—vraiment—celui qui brûle de louer Kāśī.

Word by Word

• mune: O sage
• mune: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन (Singular)

• na: not
• na: Pratishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Indeclinable), निषेध (negation particle)

• me: of me / my
• me: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम (Pronoun), षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular)

• priyaḥ: dear
• priyaḥ: Pradhana (Predicate complement/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: priya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); विधेय-विशेषण (predicative adjective)

• tadvat: in that way / similarly
• tadvat: Upamana (Comparison/उपमान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadvat (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Indeclinable), तुल्यवाचक (comparative particle: 'like that')

• dīkṣitaḥ: an initiated person
• dīkṣitaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: √dīkṣ (धातु) → dīkṣita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृत् (Past participle/क्त), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); संज्ञावत् (one who is initiated)

• mama: of me / my
• mama: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम (Pronoun), षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular)

• pūjakaḥ: worshipper
• pūjakaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pūjaka (प्रातिपदिक; from √pūj)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• yādṛk: such as / of what kind
• yādṛk: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yādṛś (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); सम्बन्धबोधक (relative adjective: 'such as')

• priyataraḥ: dearer
• priyataraḥ: Pradhana (Predicate complement/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: priya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); तरप्-प्रत्यय (comparative degree)

• satyam: truly
• satyam: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: satya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् प्रयोग (indeclinable usage), सत्यवचन (asseverative particle: 'truly')

• kāśī-stavanam: praise of Kāśī
• kāśī-stavanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक) + stavana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (Genitive determinative)

• lālasaḥ: eager, longing
• lālasaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: lālasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (qualifying implied person)

Speaker

Śiva

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Muni (Anasūyā’s son)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva declares that the dearest person is the one yearning to praise Kāśī; the devotee’s longing is shown as a radiant thread connecting heart to the city of light.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Kāśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva values heartfelt devotion expressed as longing to glorify Kāśī even above formal religious status.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), praised as dearest to Śiva through stavana.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No fixed rite is mandated; the emphasis is on eager devotion expressed through Kāśī-stavana.