Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 58

Devanagari script

घनौ वृत्तौ दृढौ पीनौ समौ शस्तौ पयोधरौ । स्थूलाग्रौ विरलौ शुष्कौ वामोरूणां न शर्मदौ

Transliteration

ghanau vṛttau dṛḍhau pīnau samau śastau payodharau | sthūlāgrau viralau śuṣkau vāmorūṇāṃ na śarmadau

Translation

ഘനവും വൃത്താകാരവും ദൃഢവും പുഷ്ടവും സമവും സുനിർമ്മിതവുമായ സ്തനങ്ങൾ പ്രശംസനീയം; എന്നാൽ അഗ്രഭാഗം സ്ഥൂലം, വിരളം അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ശുഷ്കം ആണെങ്കിൽ, സുസ്ഥൂലജംഘയുള്ള സ്ത്രീക്ക് സുഖം തരുകയില്ല।

Word by Word

• ghanau: dense, compact
• ghanau: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ghana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• vṛttau: round
• vṛttau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vṛtta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• dṛḍhau: firm, hard
• dṛḍhau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dṛḍha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• pīnau: full, plump
• pīnau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• samau: even, symmetrical
• samau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• śastau: commendable, good
• śastau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śasta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• payodharau: breasts (lit. milk-bearers)
• payodharau: Karta/Āśraya (Subject/topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paya (प्रातिपदिक) + dhara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पयः धरतीति)

• sthūlāgrau: having thick tips/fronts
• sthūlāgrau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sthūla (प्रातिपदिक) + agra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; कर्मधारयः (स्थूलम् अग्रं यस्य)

• viralau: sparse, thinly set
• viralau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: virala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• śuṣkau: dry
• śuṣkau: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śuṣka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; विशेषणम्

• vāmorūṇām: of women’s thighs
• vāmorūṇām: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāma (प्रातिपदिक) + ūru (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (वामाः ऊरवः)

• na: not
• na: Negation
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्ययम् (negation particle)

• śarmadau: giving comfort/pleasure
• śarmadau: Viśeṣaṇa (Predicate qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śarma (प्रातिपदिक) + da (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (शर्म ददातीति)

Speaker

Skanda

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A learned narrator in Kāśī explains classical strī-lakṣaṇa to attentive listeners in a quiet sabhā; the visual emphasis is on the teaching setting—palm-leaf manuscript, rosary, and the sanctified city backdrop—rather than explicit anatomy.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It presents traditional markers of well-being and comfort within household life, using the idiom of lakṣaṇa.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None directly; the Kāśī-khaṇḍa context remains in the background.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.