Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

सत्यं सत्यं पुनः सत्यं सत्यपूर्वं पुनःपुनः । न काशी सदृशी मुक्त्यै भूमिरन्या महीतले

Transliteration

satyaṃ satyaṃ punaḥ satyaṃ satyapūrvaṃ punaḥpunaḥ | na kāśī sadṛśī muktyai bhūmiranyā mahītale

Translation

Vérité, vérité, encore vérité ; et vérité avant tout, répétée maintes et maintes fois : sur la face de la terre, il n'y a aucune autre terre comme Kashi pour la libération.

Word by Word

• सत्यम्: truth
• सत्यम्: Vākya-bhāva (Assertion/वाक्यभाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; वाक्ये निपातवत् (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular; used as asseveration)

• सत्यम्: truth
• सत्यम्: Vākya-bhāva (Assertion/वाक्यभाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति-बल (repetition for emphasis)

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/पुनरावृत्ति-वाचक-अव्यय (adverb: again)

• सत्यम्: truth
• सत्यम्: Vākya-bhāva (Assertion/वाक्यभाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• सत्यपूर्वम्: with truth as the preface
• सत्यपूर्वम्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial qualifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सत्य + पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (सत्यं पूर्वं यस्य/सत्यपूर्वम्) (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• पुनःपुनः: again and again
• पुनःपुनः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनःपुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: पुनरुक्त-अव्यय (reduplicated adverb: repeatedly)

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

• काशी: Kāśī
• काशी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन (Feminine, Nominative, Singular)

• सदृशी: similar, comparable
• सदृशी: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सदृश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; विशेषण (Feminine, Nominative, Singular; Adjective)

• मुक्त्यै: for liberation
• मुक्त्यै: Sampradāna (Purpose/Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4), एकवचन (Feminine, Dative, Singular)

• भूमिः: land, place
• भूमिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूमि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन (Feminine, Nominative, Singular)

• अन्या: other
• अन्या: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; विशेषण (Feminine, Nominative, Singular; Adjective)

• महीतले: on the earth’s surface
• महीतले: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महीतल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (मही + तल) (Neuter, Locative, Singular)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sage or narrator raises a hand in oath while Kāśī appears as a mandala-like sacred city; the repeated ‘satyaṃ’ is visualized as concentric rings of light emanating from Viśveśvara over the earth-map, marking Kāśī as singular.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• Mahī (earth)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī is proclaimed as the unmatched mokṣa-kṣetra—no other place equals it for liberation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī (Vārāṇasī).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is a categorical praise (mahatmya) of Kāśī’s power to grant mokṣa.