Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

योषापि न भवेदेष यतोसौ श्मश्रुलाननः । नपुंसकोपि न भवेल्लिंगमस्ययतोर्च्यते

Transliteration

yoṣāpi na bhavedeṣa yatosau śmaśrulānanaḥ | napuṃsakopi na bhavelliṃgamasyayatorcyate

Translation

Il n’est pas non plus une femme, car son visage est barbu. Il n’est pas davantage neutre, puisque son liṅga est adoré.

Word by Word

• योषा: a woman
• योषा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योषा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• अपि: even/also
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), 'also/even'

• न: not
• न: Pratiṣedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात

• भवेत्: would be
• भवेत्: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• एषः: this one
• एषः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; निर्देशवाचक-सर्वनाम

• यतः: because
• यतः: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यतस् (अव्यय)
• Form: हेतौ अव्ययम् (because/since)

• असौ: that one
• असौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• श्मश्रुलाननः: beard-faced / having a bearded face
• श्मश्रुलाननः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्मश्रु-ल-आनन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (one whose face has beard)

• नपुंसकः: an eunuch / neuter person
• नपुंसकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नपुंसक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

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

• न: not
• न: Pratiṣedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात

• भवेत्: would be
• भवेत्: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• लिङ्गम्: mark/sign (liṅga)
• लिङ्गम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन

• अस्य: of this
• अस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• यतः: because
• यतः: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यतस् (अव्यय)
• Form: हेतौ अव्ययम् (because/since)

• अर्च्यते: is worshipped
• अर्च्यते: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अर्च् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद, कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced for Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Viśvanātha-liṅga (Kāśī)

Type: temple

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Naimiṣāraṇya sages (frame; not explicit)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Close view of a liṅga shrine in Kāśī: priests offer bilva leaves, water, and lamps; above, a faint anthropomorphic Śiva visage with beard appears in aura, while the liṅga remains the primary object of worship.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Liṅga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divinity cannot be reduced to human gender categories; Śiva is worshipped through the liṅga while remaining beyond ordinary classifications.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s overarching sacred geography is Kāśī; this verse supports Śaiva worship central to Kāśī rather than a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly references liṅga-arcana (worship of the liṅga), without detailing procedures.