Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 200

Devanagari script

विलोक्य काशीं परितो मायाद्विजवपुर्हरिः । भूयोभूयो विचार्यापि किमत्रातीव पावनम्

Transliteration

vilokya kāśīṃ parito māyādvijavapurhariḥ | bhūyobhūyo vicāryāpi kimatrātīva pāvanam

Translation

Hari, ayant revêtu par sa māyā le corps d’un brāhmaṇa, contempla Kāśī de tous côtés. Réfléchissant encore et encore, il se demanda : «Qu’y a-t-il ici de souverainement purificateur ?»

Word by Word

• vilokya: having looked at
• vilokya: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi + lok (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय-भाव (Gerund/absolutive), ‘having seen’

• kāśīm: Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• kāśīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• paritaḥ: all around
• paritaḥ: Avyaya (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: paritaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• māyā: by illusion, through māyā
• māyā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• dvija-vapuḥ: a brāhmaṇa-form
• dvija-vapuḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + vapuḥ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (dvijasya vapuḥ = ‘body/form of a brāhmaṇa’)

• hariḥ: Hari (Viṣṇu)
• hariḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• bhūyaḥ: again, repeatedly
• bhūyaḥ: Avyaya (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhūyaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• bhūyaḥ: again and again
• bhūyaḥ: Avyaya (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhūyaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, पुनरुक्ति-बल (reduplication for emphasis)

• vicārya: having considered
• vicārya: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi + car (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय-भाव (Gerund), ‘having reflected/considered’

• api: also
• api: Avyaya (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), ‘also/even’

• kim: what?
• kim: Karma/Prashna (Interrogative object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; प्रश्नवाचक (interrogative)

• atra: here, in this (place)
• atra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• atīva: exceedingly
• atīva: Avyaya (Intensifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atīva (अव्यय)
• Form: परिमाणवाचक-अव्यय (intensifier adverb)

• pāvanam: purifying, holy
• pāvanam: Visheshana (Predicate qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (predicate adjective)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and ṛṣis (typical)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Viṣṇu, disguised as a brāhmaṇa, walks the lanes and ghats of Kāśī, scanning temples and tīrthas; his face shows repeated contemplation, as if measuring an unseen spiritual radiance.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• Hari (Viṣṇu)
• Brāhmaṇa (dvija)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even great deities contemplate Kāśī’s unique purity, highlighting its extraordinary power to sanctify and liberate.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) is explicitly glorified as ‘supremely purifying’ (atīva pāvana).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is stated; the verse sets a narrative context of inquiry into Kāśī’s purifying principle.