Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

तारकेशात्पश्चिमत इंद्रेश्वरमितीरितम् । तस्य संदर्शनात्पुंसामैंद्रलोको न दूरतः

Transliteration

tārakeśātpaścimata iṃdreśvaramitīritam | tasya saṃdarśanātpuṃsāmaiṃdraloko na dūrataḥ

Translation

ತಾರಕೇಶದ ಪಶ್ಚಿಮದಲ್ಲಿ ‘ಇಂದ್ರೇಶ್ವರ’ ಎಂದು ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧವಾದ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರವಿದೆ. ಅದರ ದರ್ಶನಮಾತ್ರದಿಂದ ಪುರುಷರಿಗೆ ಇಂದ್ರಲೋಕ ದೂರವಲ್ಲ।

Word by Word

• tārakeśāt: from Tārakeśa
• tārakeśāt: Apādāna (Point of reference/‘from’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tārakeśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Pañcamī (5th/अपादान), Ekavacana

• paścimataḥ: to the west (of it)
• paścimataḥ: Deśa-nirdeśa (Directional adjunct)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: paścima (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga/Napuṃsaka, Pañcamī (5th) Ekavacana; adverbial usage ‘to the west/from the west side’

• iṃdreśvaram: Indreśvara
• iṃdreśvaram: Saṃjñā/Predicate (Name designation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: indra (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa-samāsa; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā (context: predicate name; here as quoted appellation), Ekavacana

• iti: thus
• iti: Vākyopasaṃhāra (Quotation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; quotative particle

• īritam: is said/was called
• īritam: Kriyā (Predicative passive)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √īr (धातु) ; īrita (कृदन्त)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Napuṃsaka, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; impersonal passive sense ‘is said/called’

• tasya: of it/of that (liṅga)
• tasya: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sarvanāma, Puṃliṅga/Napuṃsaka, Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/सम्बन्ध), Ekavacana

• saṃdarśanāt: from seeing (it)
• saṃdarśanāt: Hetu (Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃdarśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsaka, Pañcamī (5th/हेतु-अपादान), Ekavacana

• puṃsām: of men/people
• puṃsām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṃs (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/सम्बन्ध), Bahuvacana

• aiṃdralokaḥ: Indra’s world (heaven)
• aiṃdralokaḥ: Kartā/Phala (Result as subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aindra (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Karmadhāraya-samāsa (‘aindra’ as adjective of ‘loka’); Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; negation particle

• dūrataḥ: far/at a distance
• dūrataḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: dūratas (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb (distance)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration typically Skanda to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Indreśvara

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim approaches the Indreśvara liṅga shrine situated west of Tārakeśa; the city lanes open into a small sanctum where the liṅga radiates, and a faint vision of Amarāvatī appears as a promised fruit.

Characters & Entities

• Tārakeśa
• Indreśvara
• Indraloka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Darśana of Kāśī’s liṅgas is itself a powerful sādhanā, granting exalted post-mortem destinations.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Indreśvara in Kāśī, located west of Tārakeśa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Saṃdarśana (pilgrimage-darśana) of Indreśvara is highlighted as the key act.