Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

कृतघ्नोपि भ्रूणहापि वृषलीपतिरेव वा । मातापितृगुरुत्यागी वह्निदो गरदोपि वा

Transliteration

kṛtaghnopi bhrūṇahāpi vṛṣalīpatireva vā | mātāpitṛgurutyāgī vahnido garadopi vā

Translation

कृतघ्न, भ्रूण-हन्ता, वृषली का पति, माता-पिता-गुरु का त्याग करने वाला, अग्निदाता (आग लगाने वाला), तथा विष देने वाला—ये भी (यहाँ) महापापियों में गिने गए हैं।

Word by Word

• कृतघ्नः: an ingrate
• कृतघ्नः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृत (√कृ, क्त) + घ्न (√हन्, कर्तरि-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समास: कृतं (उपकारं) हन्ति इति (ingrate)

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

• भ्रूणहा: a foetus-slayer
• भ्रूणहा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भ्रूण (प्रातिपदिक) + √हन् (धातु, कर्तरि)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समास: भ्रूणं हन्ति इति (foetus-slayer)

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

• वृषलीपतिः: husband of a low-caste woman
• वृषलीपतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृषली (प्रातिपदिक) + पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समास: वृषल्याः पतिः (husband of a śūdra-woman)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Sambandha/Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Particle), अवधारणार्थक

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Conjunction), विकल्पार्थक

• मातापितृगुरुत्यागी: one who abandons mother, father, and guru
• मातापितृगुरुत्यागी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माता (प्रातिपदिक) + पितृ (प्रातिपदिक) + गुरु (प्रातिपदिक) + त्यागिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समास: माता+पितृ+गुरु (द्वन्द्व) + त्यागिन् (one who abandons)

• वह्निदः: an arsonist
• वह्निदः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वह्नि (प्रातिपदिक) + द (√दा, कर्तरि)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समास: वह्निं ददाति/प्रयच्छति इति (arsonist; giver of fire)

• गरदः: a poisoner
• गरदः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गरद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

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

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Conjunction), विकल्पार्थक

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrimage audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A stern moral panorama: a figure turning away from parents and guru, a hidden poisoner, a fire-setter—then a repentant pilgrim entering a Kāśī shrine with folded hands, seeking transformation.

Characters & Entities

• Bhrūṇahatyā
• Guru-tyāga
• Arson (Vahnida)
• Poisoning (Garada)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It underscores how seriously dharma treats ingratitude, harm to life, abandonment of elders/teachers, and violent crimes.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not directly named in the verse; it functions within Kāśī’s Trilocana Liṅga glorification passage.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this line; it continues the catalog of mahāpāpa that Kāśī’s Śaiva grace is later said to purify.