Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

स्थावरा जंगमाः काश्यामचेतनसचेतनाः । सर्वे ममैव लिंगानि तेभ्यो द्रुह्यंति दुर्धियः

Transliteration

sthāvarā jaṃgamāḥ kāśyāmacetanasacetanāḥ | sarve mamaiva liṃgāni tebhyo druhyaṃti durdhiyaḥ

Translation

À Kāśī, l’immobile et le mobile, l’insensible et le sensible, tous sont en vérité mes liṅgas. Les esprits mauvais leur font offense.

Word by Word

• स्थावराः: immovables (stationary beings)
• स्थावराः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्थावर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• जङ्गमाः: movables (mobile beings)
• जङ्गमाः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जङ्गम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• काश्याम्: in Kāśī
• काश्याम्: Adhikaraṇa (Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• अचेतनसचेतनाः: insentient and sentient
• अचेतनसचेतनाः: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अचेतन (प्रातिपदिक) + सचेतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वन्द्वसमास (इतरेतर): अचेतन + सचेतन; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण of ‘स्थावराः जङ्गमाः’

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समुच्चयार्थ

• मम: my
• मम: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी, एकवचन

• एव: indeed, only
• एव: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय

• लिङ्गानि: liṅgas, emblems
• लिङ्गानि: Karta (Predicate nominal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• तेभ्यः: from/against them
• तेभ्यः: Apādāna (Ablative/source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), बहुवचन

• द्रुह्यन्ति: they harm, they bear malice
• द्रुह्यन्ति: Kriya (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: द्रुह् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• दुर्धियः: the evil-minded
• दुर्धियः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुर्धि (प्रातिपदिक: दुḥ + धि)
• Form: बहुव्रीहिसमास: ‘दुर्धिः यस्य सः’ (one of bad intellect); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

Speaker

Viśveśa/Śiva (quoted within Skanda’s narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Internal narratee (contextual)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A panoramic Kāśī scene where stones, trees, animals, pilgrims, and shrines subtly bear liṅga-marks; a contrasting figure of ‘dur-dhi’ shows disrespect, shadowed by karmic consequence.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Viśveśa/Śiva
• Liṅga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

In Kāśī, everything participates in Śiva’s presence; harming beings or places there is treated as an offense against Śiva.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) as a total sacred field where all entities are Śiva’s signs (liṅgas).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

An implied discipline of reverence and non-offense toward all beings and sacred forms in Kāśī.