Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 94

Devanagari script

नीरुक्छरीरसंपत्तिर्निवेदे किं नु कारणम् । अनवाप्ताभिलाषाणां वैराग्यं जायते नृणाम्

Transliteration

nīrukcharīrasaṃpattirnivede kiṃ nu kāraṇam | anavāptābhilāṣāṇāṃ vairāgyaṃ jāyate nṛṇām

Translation

നിനക്കു രോഗമില്ലാത്ത ദേഹസമ്പത്തും സർവ്വസൗഭാഗ്യവും ഉണ്ട്—എങ്കിൽ അസന്തോഷത്തിന് കാരണമെന്ത്? ആഗ്രഹിച്ചതെല്ലാം ലഭിക്കാതിരിക്കുമ്പോഴാണ് സാധാരണയായി മനുഷ്യർക്കു വൈരാഗ്യം ഉദിക്കുന്നത്.

Word by Word

• nīrukcharīra-saṃpattiḥ: the prosperity/condition of a body without disease
• nīrukcharīra-saṃpattiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nīrukcha (प्रातिपदिक) + śarīra (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃpatti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative, 1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/निर्देश-तत्पुरुषः—‘nīrukcha-śarīrasya saṃpattiḥ’ इति भावः

• nivede: in the statement/report (in the submission)
• nivede: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niveda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी (Locative, 7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); प्रश्नवाचक-सर्वनाम (interrogative pronoun)

• nu: indeed/then (interrogative emphasis)
• nu: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle), प्रश्न/अनुनयार्थक-निपात (interrogative/emphatic particle)

• kāraṇam: the cause
• kāraṇam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative, 1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• anavāpta-abhilāṣāṇām: of those whose desires are unfulfilled
• anavāpta-abhilāṣāṇām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: an-avāpta (कृदन्त; √āp/avāp ‘to obtain’ + नञ्) + abhilāṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), षष्ठी (Genitive, 6th), बहुवचन (Plural); कर्मधारयः—‘anavāptāḥ abhilāṣāḥ yeṣām’ इति (unfulfilled desires)

• vairāgyam: dispassion
• vairāgyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vairāgya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative, 1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• jāyate: arises/is born
• jāyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), आत्मनेपद (Ātmanepada)

• nṛṇām: of men/people
• nṛṇām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), षष्ठी (Genitive, 6th), बहुवचन (Plural)

Speaker

Sages

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: (contextual interlocutors within Kāśīkhaṇḍa)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A compassionate elder questions a well-endowed yet dissatisfied prince/child, highlighting the paradox of worldly prosperity and inner discontent.

Characters & Entities

• sages
• Dhruva

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly comfort does not guarantee peace; true vairāgya is deeper than mere frustration and must be examined with discernment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named tīrtha; the verse is ethical-reflective within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a doctrinal observation about human dispassion.