Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

अर्चिष्मती संयमिनी पुण्यवत्यमलावती । गंधवत्यलकेशी च नैतत्तुल्या महर्धिभिः

Transliteration

arciṣmatī saṃyaminī puṇyavatyamalāvatī | gaṃdhavatyalakeśī ca naitattulyā mahardhibhiḥ

Translation

അർച്ചിഷ്മതീ, സംയമിനീ, പുണ്യവതീ, അമലാവതീ, ഗന്ധവതീ, അലകേശീ—മഹാസമൃദ്ധികളുണ്ടായാലും—ഇതിന് തുല്യമല്ല।

Word by Word

• arciṣmatī: radiant
• arciṣmatī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: arciṣmat (अर्चिष्मत्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• saṃyaminī: self-controlled
• saṃyaminī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saṃyaminī (संयमिनी-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• puṇyavatī: virtuous; meritorious
• puṇyavatī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: puṇyavat (पुण्यवत्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• amalāvatī: spotless
• amalāvatī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: amalāvatī (अमलावती-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• gandhavatī: fragrant
• gandhavatī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gandhavat (गन्धवत्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• alakeśī: having beautiful hair/locks
• alakeśī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: alakeśī (अलकेशी-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (च अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction

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

• etat: this
• etat: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (एतद्-सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• tulyā: equal
• tulyā: Pradhāna-viśeṣaṇa (Predicate complement)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tulya (तुल्य-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; predicate adjective (agreeing with implied feminine entity)

• mahardhibhiḥ: with great prosperities/powers
• mahardhibhiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/Comparison/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (महा-प्रातिपदिक) + ṛddhi (ऋद्धि-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural; समासः—कर्मधारयः (महती ऋद्धिः)

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A garland of six celestial cities personified as jeweled queens—Arciṣmatī, Saṃyaminī, Puṇyavatī, Amalāvatī, Gandhavatī, Alakeśī—standing with their riches, yet bowing toward Kāśī’s simpler but more radiant sacred presence.

Characters & Entities

• Arciṣmatī
• Saṃyaminī
• Puṇyavatī
• Amalāvatī
• Gandhavatī
• Alakeśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even the most radiant and prosperous divine cities cannot match the unique spiritual rank of the praised sacred locus.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is being upheld as superior to famed celestial or otherworldly cities.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is comparative eulogy (māhātmya) rather than procedural instruction.