Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 120

Devanagari script

तारकेशं महालिंगं तारकाख्यो गणोत्तमः । तारकज्ञानदं पुंसां मुनेऽद्यापि समर्चयेत्

Transliteration

tārakeśaṃ mahāliṃgaṃ tārakākhyo gaṇottamaḥ | tārakajñānadaṃ puṃsāṃ mune'dyāpi samarcayet

Translation

ഹേ മുനേ, ഇന്നും താരകേശം എന്ന മഹാലിംഗത്തെയും, താരകൻ എന്ന ശ്രേഷ്ഠ ഗണത്തെയും വിധിപൂർവ്വം സമർചിക്കണം; അത് പുരുഷന്മാർക്ക് താരകജ്ഞാനം (ഉദ്ധാരക ജ്ഞാനം) നൽകുന്നു।

Word by Word

• तारकेशम्: Tārakeśa (Lord of Tāraka)
• तारकेशम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तारक + ईश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (तारकस्य ईशः)

• महालिङ्गम्: the great liṅga
• महालिङ्गम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा + लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महच्च तत् लिङ्गम्)

• तारकाख्यः: named Tāraka
• तारकाख्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तारक + आख्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (तारक इति आख्यः = named Tāraka)

• गणोत्तमः: the best of the gaṇas
• गणोत्तमः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गण + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गणानाम् उत्तमः)

• तारकज्ञानदम्: giver of knowledge about Tāraka
• तारकज्ञानदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तारक + ज्ञान + द (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (तारकस्य ज्ञानं ददाति)

• पुंसाम्: for men/of people
• पुंसाम्: Sampradana (Beneficiary as genitive/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुम्स्/पुंस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• मुने: O sage
• मुने: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन

• अद्य: today/now
• अद्य: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अद्य (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• अपि: even/also
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अपि-कारार्थक-अव्यय (particle: 'also/even')

• समर्चयेत्: should worship
• समर्चयेत्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + अर्च् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative/Potential), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Tārakeśa (Tārakeśvara) Liṅga

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: muni (sage)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A radiant black-stone liṅga labeled Tārakeśa, garlanded with bilva and white flowers; beside it stands the gaṇa Tāraka as a protective attendant; a sage receives a beam of ‘tāraka-jñāna’ as light from the liṅga.

Characters & Entities

• Tārakeśa
• Tāraka
• Liṅga
• Kāśī
• Vārāṇasī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worship of Tārakeśvara in Kāśī grants liberating insight—knowledge that carries one across saṃsāra.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Tārakeśvara (Tārakeśa) Mahāliṅga shrine-site in Kāśī (Vārāṇasī).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Samarcana—proper worship of the Tārakeśvara liṅga (and honoring the gaṇa Tāraka) is enjoined.