Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 110

Devanagari script

अथ प्रातः समुत्थाय कृत्वा शौचाचमक्रियाम् । राज्ञ्या विनिर्दिष्टपथा ज्ञानवापीं नृपो ययौ

Transliteration

atha prātaḥ samutthāya kṛtvā śaucācamakriyām | rājñyā vinirdiṣṭapathā jñānavāpīṃ nṛpo yayau

Translation

അപ്പോൾ രാജാവ് പ്രഭാതത്തിൽ എഴുന്നേറ്റ് ശൗചവും ആചമനാദി ശുദ്ധിക്രിയകളും നിർവഹിച്ചു, രാജ്ഞി നിർദേശിച്ച വഴിയിലൂടെ ജ്ഞാനവാപിയിലേക്കു പോയി।

Word by Word

• अथ: then, now
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रमसूचक/आरम्भसूचक (indeclinable particle: then/now)

• प्रातः: in the morning
• प्रातः: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रातः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb: in the morning)

• समुत्थाय: having risen
• समुत्थाय: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्+उत्+स्था (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); ‘समुत्थाय’ = having risen; धातु: स्था, उपसर्ग: सम्, उत्

• कृत्वा: having performed
• कृत्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); ‘कृत्वा’ = having done

• शौचाचमक्रियाम्: the cleansing-and-ācamana rite
• शौचाचमक्रियाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शौच + आचम + क्रिया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (शौचस्य आचमस्य च क्रिया) = the act of cleansing and sipping (ācamana)

• राज्ञ्या: by the queen
• राज्ञ्या: Karana (Instrument/Agentive means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राज्ञी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; तृतीया विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन (by the queen)

• विनिर्दिष्टपथा: (the king) whose route was indicated
• विनिर्दिष्टपथा: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विनिर्दिष्ट + पथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुषभावः (विनिर्दिष्टः पथः यस्य) ‘whose path was pointed out’; विशेषणं ‘नृपः’

• ज्ञानवापीम्: to the Jñānavāpī (well of knowledge)
• ज्ञानवापीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्ञान + वापी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (ज्ञानस्य वापी)

• नृपः: the king
• नृपः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• ययौ: went
• ययौ: Kriya (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect); प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; ‘he went’

Speaker

Narrator (Skanda to Agastya, contextually)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Jñānavāpī

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At dawn, the king rises, completes purification and ācamana, then walks through Kāśī’s lanes on the queen-indicated route toward the Jñānavāpī precinct.

Characters & Entities

• Jñānavāpī
• Mālyaketu
• Kalāvatī
• Kāśī (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Approaching a tīrtha is to be done with purity, discipline, and reverence—outer cleanliness supporting inner readiness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Jñānavāpī, a renowned sacred spot in Kāśī’s spiritual geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śauca (purification) and ācamana before proceeding to the tīrtha.