Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 84

Devanagari script

मृणालनालवत्तीव्रं चर्वंतीमस्थि पापिनः । शूलाग्रप्रोत दुर्वृत्त क्षेत्रद्रोहिकलेवराम्

Transliteration

mṛṇālanālavattīvraṃ carvaṃtīmasthi pāpinaḥ | śūlāgraprota durvṛtta kṣetradrohikalevarām

Translation

താമരനാളുപോലെ തീക്ഷ്ണതയോടെ പാപികളുടെ അസ്ഥികളെ ചവച്ചുകൊണ്ട്, അവൾ ത്രിശൂലാഗ്രത്തിൽ ദുർവൃത്ത—പുണ്യക്ഷേത്രദ്രോഹികളുടെ—ശരീരങ്ങളെ കുത്തി ധരിക്കുന്നു।

Word by Word

• mṛṇāla-nāla-vat-tīvram: very sharp like a lotus-stalk
• mṛṇāla-nāla-vat-tīvram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mṛṇāla (प्रातिपदिक) + nāla (प्रातिपदिक) + vat (तद्धित-प्रत्यय) + tīvra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (mṛṇālanālavān इव तīvraḥ)

• carvantīm: chewing
• carvantīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: carv (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present active participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• asthi: bone
• asthi: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asthi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• pāpinaḥ: sinners
• pāpinaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• śūla-agra-prota: pierced on the tip of a spear
• śūla-agra-prota: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śūla (प्रातिपदिक) + agra (प्रातिपदिक) + protá (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक, √pru/√pruñ ‘to string/pierce’)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (śūlāgrasya protā)

• durvṛtta: wicked, of bad conduct
• durvṛtta: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dur (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + vṛtta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• kṣetra-drohi-kalevarām: (her) body that is hostile to the sacred field (kṣetra)
• kṣetra-drohi-kalevarām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक) + drohin (प्रातिपदिक) + kalevara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (kṣetrasya drohī yasyaḥ sā; तस्याः kalevaram/रूपम्)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A terrifying guardian Devī in Kāśī, lotus-stalk-like sharpness imagery, trident tip with impaled bodies of kṣetra-betrayers; bones being crushed/chewed as a symbol of punitive protection.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī-kṣetra
• Guardian Devī
• Śūla (trident)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holy places demand maryādā (reverent conduct); betrayal of the kṣetra is condemned, and dharma is defended by divine guardians.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Kāśī-kṣetra as a whole, emphasizing the sanctity of the sacred precinct.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite; the verse warns against kṣetra-droha and impure conduct in a tīrtha.