Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

सुनीलेंदीवररुचिं सुस्निग्ध मधुराकृतिम् । नाभीह्रदलसत्पद्म सुपाटलरदच्छदम्

Transliteration

sunīleṃdīvararuciṃ susnigdha madhurākṛtim | nābhīhradalasatpadma supāṭalaradacchadam

Translation

അവന്റെ പ്രഭ ഗാഢനീല താമരപോലെ; രൂപം സ്നിഗ്ധവും അതിമധുരവുമായിരുന്നു. നാഭി-ഹ്രദത്തിൽ നിന്ന് താമര ദീപ്തമായി; മനോഹരമായ പിങ്ക് ദന്തങ്ങളെ മൂടുന്ന അവന്റെ അധരങ്ങൾ ശോഭിച്ചു.

Word by Word

• सुनील-इन्दीवर-रुचिम्: having the hue/lustre of deep-blue lotus
• सुनील-इन्दीवर-रुचिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + नील (प्रातिपदिक) + इन्दीवर (प्रातिपदिक) + रुचि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (विशेषण-विशेष्यभावः)

• सु-स्निग्धम्: very glossy/unctuous
• सु-स्निग्धम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + स्निग्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (सु + स्निग्ध)

• मधुर-आकृतिम्: of sweet/pleasing form
• मधुर-आकृतिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मधुर (प्रातिपदिक) + आकृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः

• नाभी-ह्रद-लसत्-पद्म: with a lotus shining in the navel-lake
• नाभी-ह्रद-लसत्-पद्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नाभी (प्रातिपदिक) + ह्रद (प्रातिपदिक) + लसत् (कृदन्त, लस्-धातु) + पद्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (नाभ्याः ह्रद इव; तत्र लसत् पद्मम्)

• सु-पाटल-रद-च्छदम्: having very pink lips (covering the teeth)
• सु-पाटल-रद-च्छदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + पाटल (प्रातिपदिक) + रद (प्रातिपदिक) + छद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (रदानां छदः = ओष्ठः; सु-पाटलः)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A serene, dark-blue (sunīla) Lord with smooth, sweetly proportioned limbs; from His navel-lake arises a radiant lotus; lips gently cover pink teeth, the face calm and compassionate.

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu
• Navel-lotus (nābhī-padma)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred beauty is a doorway to devotion—contemplation of the Lord’s form steadies the mind and nourishes bhakti.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse itself is iconographic; the surrounding narrative belongs to Kāśī’s tīrtha-mahātmya stream (Pañcanada context).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it implicitly supports dhyāna and upāsanā through visual contemplation.