Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

एकोऽजरद्गवः सोपि नान्यस्मात्परिजीवति । श्मशानवासिनः सर्वे सर्वे कौपीनवाससः

Transliteration

eko'jaradgavaḥ sopi nānyasmātparijīvati | śmaśānavāsinaḥ sarve sarve kaupīnavāsasaḥ

Translation

ഒരേയൊരു അജര വൃഷഭൻ മാത്രമുണ്ട്; അവനും മറ്റാരുടെയും ആശ്രയത്തിൽ ജീവിക്കുന്നില്ല. അവർ എല്ലാവരും ശ്മശാനവാസികൾ; എല്ലാവരും കൗപീനമേ ധരിക്കുന്നവർ.

Word by Word

• एकः: one
• एकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; संख्याविशेषण

• अजरद्गवः: one who has a non-aging cow/bull
• अजरद्गवः: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अ-जरत्-गव (प्रातिपदिक; अ + जरत् + गव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (अजरद् गवो यस्य/यः)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• अपि: also
• अपि: Emphasis (Nipāta/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle: ‘also/even’)

• न: not
• न: Negation (निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध (negation particle)

• अन्यस्मात्: from another
• अन्यस्मात्: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन

• परिजीवति: lives (by depending)
• परिजीवति: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि-जीव् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• श्मशानवासिनः: dwellers in the cremation-ground
• श्मशानवासिनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्मशान-वासिन् (प्रातिपदिक; श्मशान + वासिन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (श्मशाने वासिनः)

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; पुनरुक्ति-बल (repetition for emphasis)

• कौपीनवाससः: wearers of loincloths
• कौपीनवाससः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कौपीन-वासस् (प्रातिपदिक; कौपीन + वासस्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः (कौपीनं वासो येषाम्)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śmaśāna (conceptual; Kāśī also has Manikarnikā)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cremation-ground settlement: ash-grey ascetics in loincloths, skull-bowls, sparse huts; a solitary timeless bull stands calm amid funeral pyres; atmosphere of detachment rather than horror.

Characters & Entities

• Bull (Nandin motif)
• Śmaśāna (cremation-ground)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Renunciation and fearlessness—living amid impermanence (śmaśāna)—signify transcendence, a key Śaiva ideal celebrated in Kāśī lore.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī, whose cremation-ground sanctity is integral to its identity as the city of liberation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse alludes to ascetic dress and śmaśāna-dwelling as Śaiva motifs rather than a prescribed rite.