Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

मासोपवासव्रतिनश्चातुर्मास्य व्रताश्च ये । ऋत्वंततोयपाना ये षण्मासोपवासकाः

Transliteration

māsopavāsavratinaścāturmāsya vratāśca ye | ṛtvaṃtatoyapānā ye ṣaṇmāsopavāsakāḥ

Translation

ചിലർ മാസമുഴുവൻ ഉപവാസവ്രതം അനുഷ്ഠിക്കുന്നു; ചിലർ ചാതുർമാസ്യവ്രതം ധരിക്കുന്നു; ചിലർ ഋതുവിന്റെ അവസാനം മാത്രം ജലപാനം ചെയ്യുന്നു; ചിലർ ആറുമാസം ഉപവാസം ചെയ്യുന്നു।

Word by Word

• māsa-upavāsa-vratinaḥ: those who observe month-long fasting vows
• māsa-upavāsa-vratinaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक) + upavāsa (प्रातिपदिक) + vratin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), बहुवचन; समासः—मासोपवासव्रतिनः = मासे उपवासव्रतं येषां ते (उपवासव्रतिन्)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• cāturmāsya-vratāḥ: those (vows) of the four-month observance
• cāturmāsya-vratāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cāturmāsya (प्रातिपदिक) + vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), बहुवचन; समासः—चातुर्मास्यव्रतानि = चातुर्मास्ये (चारि मासाः) कृतानि व्रतानि

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• ye: who
• ye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• ṛtu-anta-toya-pānāḥ: those who drink water only at the end of a season
• ṛtu-anta-toya-pānāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛtu (प्रातिपदिक) + anta (प्रातिपदिक) + toya (प्रातिपदिक) + pāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), बहुवचन; समासः—ऋत्वन्ततोयपानाः = ऋतूनाम् अन्ते तोयं पिबन्ति ये (toya-pāna)

• ye: who
• ye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम

• ṣaṇmāsa-upavāsakāḥ: those who fast for six months
• ṣaṇmāsa-upavāsakāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṣaṇmāsa (प्रातिपदिक) + upavāsaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), बहुवचन; समासः—षण्मासोपवासकाः = षण्मासान् उपवसन्ति ये

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A line of ascetics in a forest-edge near the sacred city: some emaciated from month-long fasts, some observing Cāturmāsya with controlled diet, some sipping water only at seasonal end, others in prolonged fasting—faces calm, eyes inward, bodies spare.

Characters & Entities

• Cāturmāsya
• Tapoloka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Long-term vows and regulated living are praised as powerful means for purification and spiritual ascent.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The teaching belongs to Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s mahātmya framework, while the verse itself emphasizes vrata-based tapas leading to Tapoloka.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Vratas including month-long fasting, Cāturmāsya observance, seasonal water restriction, and six-month fasts.