Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

जटाटवी कोटरांतः कृतनीडांडजाश्च ये । प्ररूढवामलूरांगाः स्नायुनद्धास्थिसंचयाः

Transliteration

jaṭāṭavī koṭarāṃtaḥ kṛtanīḍāṃḍajāśca ye | prarūḍhavāmalūrāṃgāḥ snāyunaddhāsthisaṃcayāḥ

Translation

ചിലരുടെ ജടകൾ വനഗുഹപോലെ ആയി; അതിനുള്ളിൽ പക്ഷികൾ കൂടുകെട്ടി മുട്ടയിട്ടിരിക്കുന്നു; അവരുടെ ശരീരം വികൃതവും ക്ഷീണിതവും—സ്നായുക്കൾ കൊണ്ട് ബന്ധിച്ച അസ്ഥികൂടം മാത്രം।

Word by Word

• jaṭā-ṭavī-koṭara-antaḥ: (their bodies) like the inner hollow of a forest of matted hair
• jaṭā-ṭavī-koṭara-antaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jaṭā (प्रातिपदिक) + ṭavī (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭara (प्रातिपदिक) + anta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—जटाटवीकोटरान्तः = जटानां टवी (वनम्) तस्य कोटरस्य अन्तः (अन्तर्भागः) इव (बहुवचनार्थे समुदायवाचक)

• kṛta-nīḍa-aṇḍajāḥ: egg-born creatures (birds) that have made nests (therein)
• kṛta-nīḍa-aṇḍajāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + nīḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + aṇḍaja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समासः—कृतनीडाण्डजाः = कृतं नीडं येषां ते अण्डजाः (nest-making birds)

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

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

• prarūḍha-vāma-lūru-aṅgāḥ: whose limbs have grown crooked and deformed
• prarūḍha-vāma-lūru-aṅgāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prarūḍha (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + vāma (प्रातिपदिक) + lūru (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम्—प्ररूढानि वामलूराणि अङ्गानि येषां ते (वाम=वक्र, लूर=विकृत/क्षत)

• snāyu-naddha-asthi-saṃcayāḥ: mere heaps of bones bound by sinews
• snāyu-naddha-asthi-saṃcayāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāyu (प्रातिपदिक) + naddha (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + asthi (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃcaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समासः—स्नायुनद्धास्थिसंचयाः = स्नायुभिः नद्धः (बद्धः) अस्थीनां संचयः इव (केवलास्थिसमूहवत्)

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Close view of an aged ascetic with immense matted locks like a dark forest; within the hair, small birds nest and eggs rest. The body is thin and twisted, ribs visible, limbs sinew-bound—yet the face is composed, eyes steady.

Characters & Entities

• Tapoloka
• Ascetics

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The verse emphasizes detachment from bodily appearance and comfort, portraying tapas as a total offering of the body to spiritual purpose.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader Kāśī-khaṇḍa frames the narration, but the verse itself describes Tapoloka-dwelling ascetics rather than a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No single rite is prescribed; the focus is on the extreme ascetic condition resulting from prolonged austerity.