Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 15

Devanagari script

सर्ववर्णाश्रमेभ्यश्च वेदविद्भ्यश्च वै तथा । शास्त्रार्थपारगेभ्यश्च गंगास्नायी विशिष्यते

Transliteration

sarvavarṇāśramebhyaśca vedavidbhyaśca vai tathā | śāstrārthapāragebhyaśca gaṃgāsnāyī viśiṣyate

Translation

ഗംഗയിൽ സ്നാനം ചെയ്യുന്നവൻ—എല്ലാ വർണാശ്രമസ്ഥരിലും, വേദവിദ്വാന്മാരിലും, ശാസ്ത്രാർത്ഥപാരഗന്മാരിലും മേലായി വിശിഷ്ടനായി കണക്കാക്കപ്പെടുന്നു.

Word by Word

• सर्ववर्णाश्रमेभ्यः: from (among) all varṇas and āśramas
• सर्ववर्णाश्रमेभ्यः: Apādāna (Source/Comparison/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व-वर्ण-आश्रम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative), बहुवचन; समासः द्वन्द्वः (वर्णाश्रमौ) उपपदेन सर्व-विशेषणम्

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय

• वेदविद्भ्यः: from (among) knowers of the Veda
• वेदविद्भ्यः: Apādāna (Source/Comparison/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेद-विद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (वेदं वेत्ति इति)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphasis)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb: in like manner)

• शास्त्रार्थपारगेभ्यः: from (among) those who have mastered the meaning of scriptures
• शास्त्रार्थपारगेभ्यः: Apādāna (Source/Comparison/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शास्त्र-अर्थ-पारग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (शास्त्रस्य अर्थे पारगः)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय

• गंगास्नायी: one who bathes in the Ganga
• गंगास्नायी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा-स्नायिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (गङ्गायां स्नायी)

• विशिष्यते: is distinguished/excels
• विशिष्यते: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि-शिष् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; धातुः √शिष् (to be distinguished) उपसर्गः वि

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgā (Kāśī)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On a Kāśī ghāṭa, diverse figures—brahmacārin, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, sannyāsin; scholars holding palm-leaf manuscripts—stand beside a simple pilgrim emerging from Gaṅgā; a subtle radiance surrounds the bather, indicating ‘viśiṣyate’.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Varṇa
• Āśrama
• Veda
• Śāstra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred contact with Gaṅgā is portrayed as an exceptional purifier, surpassing even status and scholarship when approached as tīrtha-dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gaṅgā-snāna in the Kāśī milieu, exalted as uniquely meritorious.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (ritual bathing) in the Gaṅgā is the explicit practice praised.