Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 57

Devanagari script

प्राणायामं तु यः कुर्यादप्येकं मुक्तिमंडपे । तेनाष्टांगः समभ्यस्तो योगोऽन्यत्रायुतं समाः

Transliteration

prāṇāyāmaṃ tu yaḥ kuryādapyekaṃ muktimaṃḍape | tenāṣṭāṃgaḥ samabhyasto yogo'nyatrāyutaṃ samāḥ

Translation

‘മുക്തിമണ്ഡപ’ത്തിൽ ഒരൊറ്റ പ്രാണായാമം പോലും ചെയ്യുന്നവന്‍, അതിനാൽ അഷ്ടാംഗയോഗാഭ്യാസം മറ്റിടത്തെ പത്തായിരം വർഷത്തെ সাধനയ്‌ക്ക് തുല്യമെന്നു കണക്കാക്കപ്പെടുന്നു.

Word by Word

• प्राणायामम्: breath-control (prāṇāyāma)
• प्राणायामम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्राण + आयाम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (प्राणस्य आयामः)

• तु: indeed / but
• तु: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), विरोध/विशेष (but/indeed)

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्बन्ध-प्रत्यय (relative pronoun)

• कुर्यात्: should do / would perform
• कुर्यात्: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), अपि-अर्थ (even)

• एकम्: one (single)
• एकम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of prāṇāyāmam)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• मुक्तिमण्डपे: in the liberation-pavilion
• मुक्तिमण्डपे: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुक्ति + मण्डप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (मुक्तेः मण्डपः)

• तेन: by that
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अष्टाङ्गः: eight-limbed
• अष्टाङ्गः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of yogaḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अष्ट + अङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—द्विगु (अष्ट अङ्गानि यस्य)

• समभ्यस्तः: well-practised
• समभ्यस्तः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of yogaḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम् + अभि + √अभ्यस् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त

• योगः: yoga
• योगः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अन्यत्र: elsewhere
• अन्यत्र: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अन्यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, देशवाचक (elsewhere)

• अयुतम्: ten thousand
• अयुतम्: Visheshana (Numerical qualifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अयुत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; संख्यावाचक (ten-thousand)

• समाः: years
• समाः: Karma (Extent of time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced for Kāśīkhaṇḍa context, addressing Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mukti-maṇḍapa (Kāśī)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: In the Mukti Pavilion, a devotee performs a single measured prāṇāyāma before the shrine; the eight limbs of yoga appear symbolically around them, while vast spans of time (10,000 years) fade into insignificance.

Characters & Entities

• Mukti-maṇḍapa
• Prāṇāyāma
• Aṣṭāṅga-yoga
• Kāśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Place and practice converge: in Kāśī, even minimal yogic effort becomes immensely potent due to the sanctity of the mukti-centered site.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Mukti-maṇḍapa (Liberation Pavilion) within Kāśī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Perform prāṇāyāma—explicitly stated as even one cycle—at the Mukti-maṇḍapa.