Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 99

Devanagari script

महाकालमहाकालमहाकालेतिसंततम् । स्मरतःस्मरतो नित्यं स्मरकर्तृस्मरांतकौ

Transliteration

mahākālamahākālamahākāletisaṃtatam | smarataḥsmarato nityaṃ smarakartṛsmarāṃtakau

Translation

ആർ നിരന്തരം “മഹാകാല, മഹാകാല, മഹാകാല” എന്നു ജപിച്ച്, നിത്യം വീണ്ടും വീണ്ടും അവനെ സ്മരിക്കുമോ, അവൻ കാമന്റെ കർത്താവിനെയും കാമാന്തകനെയും—ഇരുവരെയും സ്മരിക്കുന്നു.

Word by Word

• महाकाल: O Mahākāla
• महाकाल: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाकाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (Vocative) एकवचन; (जप/उच्चारणे)

• महाकाल: O Mahākāla
• महाकाल: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाकाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (Vocative) एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति (repetition)

• महाकाल: O Mahākāla
• महाकाल: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाकाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (Vocative) एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति

• इति: thus (saying)
• इति: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उद्धरण/इत्यर्थक (quotative particle)

• संततम्: continuously
• संततम्: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: संतत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाववत् क्रियाविशेषण-प्रयोगः; अव्ययार्थे (adverb: continuously)

• स्मरतः: of one remembering
• स्मरतः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृ (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्यय (present active participle), पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; (जनस्य) ‘of one who remembers’

• स्मरतो: of one remembering
• स्मरतो: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृ (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्यय (present active participle), पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति

• नित्यम्: always
• नित्यम्: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-प्रयोगः; अव्ययार्थे (adverb: always)

• स्मरकर्तृस्मरान्तकौ: the creator of Smara and the destroyer of Smara (both)
• स्मरकर्तृस्मरान्तकौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्मर-कर्तृ + स्मर-अन्तक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; द्वन्द्व-समासः (स्मरकर्तृ च स्मरान्तकश्च)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśī-khaṇḍa discourse, often Skanda to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahākāla (Kāśī)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee seated near a Kāśī shrine repeats ‘Mahākāla’ on a rudrākṣa mālā; behind, Śiva appears as Smarāntaka with a calm, ash-smeared form; a faint image of Kāma (with sugarcane bow) dissolves into light, symbolizing desire’s pacification.

Characters & Entities

• Mahākāla
• Smara (Kāma)
• Smara-antaka (Śiva)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Nāma-smaraṇa of Mahākāla is a direct devotional practice that aligns the mind with Śiva’s power over desire and time.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Mahākāla’s kṣetra is the implied setting, but the practice (Mahākāla-nāma) is portable and can be done anywhere.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Yes: continuous repetition/remembering of the name “Mahākāla” (nāma-japa / smaraṇa).