Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 42

Devanagari script

तद्दक्षिणे शचीशश्च स्वयं शच्या प्रतिष्ठितः । शचीशार्चनतः स्त्रीणां सौभाग्यमतुलं भवेत्

Transliteration

taddakṣiṇe śacīśaśca svayaṃ śacyā pratiṣṭhitaḥ | śacīśārcanataḥ strīṇāṃ saubhāgyamatulaṃ bhavet

Translation

അതിന്റെ തെക്കായി ശചീശൻ ഉണ്ട്; ശചീദേവി തന്നെയാണ് പ്രതിഷ്ഠിച്ചത്. ശചീശാരാധനയാൽ സ്ത്രീകൾക്ക് അതുല്യ സൗഭാഗ്യവും ദാമ്പത്യസമൃദ്ധിയും ലഭിക്കും।

Word by Word

• tat: that
• tat: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sarvanāma, Napuṃsaka, Ṣaṣṭhī/Saptamī-sambandha in compound context; here used as deictic ‘that’ qualifying ‘dakṣiṇe’

• dakṣiṇe: on the south (side)
• dakṣiṇe: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dakṣiṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsaka (or Puṃliṅga as ‘side’), Saptamī (7th/अधिकरण), Ekavacana; ‘on the southern side’

• śacīśaḥ: Śacīśa (lord of Śacī/Indra)
• śacīśaḥ: Kartā (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śacī (प्रातिपदिक) + īśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa-samāsa (‘lord of Śacī’); Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st/कर्ता), Ekavacana

• ca: and/also
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction

• svayam: himself
• svayam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: svayam (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; reflexive adverb

• śacyā: by Śacī
• śacyā: Karaṇa (Instrument/Agent in passive nuance)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śacī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Tṛtīyā (3rd/करण), Ekavacana

• pratiṣṭhitaḥ: is established/installed
• pratiṣṭhitaḥ: Kriyā (Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (धातु) + prati- उपसर्ग; pratiṣṭhita (कृदन्त)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; predicative ‘is established’

• śacīśārcanataḥ: from/by worship of Śacīśa
• śacīśārcanataḥ: Hetu (Cause/Means)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: śacīśa (प्रातिपदिक) + arcana (प्रातिपदिक) + -tas (अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (‘worship of Śacīśa’) + tasil (तसिल्) ablatival adverbial suffix -tas; avyaya meaning ‘from/through the worship’

• strīṇām: of women
• strīṇām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/सम्बन्ध), Bahuvacana

• saubhāgyam: good fortune, auspicious married bliss
• saubhāgyam: Kartā/Phala (Result as subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saubhāgya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsaka, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana

• atulam: incomparable
• atulam: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: atula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsaka, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa of ‘saubhāgyam’

• bhavet: would be/comes to be
• bhavet: Kriyā (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: Liṅ-lakāra (Optative/Potential), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana, Parasmaipada

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration typically Skanda to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śacīśa

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: South of Indreśvara, a shrine of Śacīśa: Śacī is depicted installing or worshiping the liṅga; women devotees offer flowers and lamps, seeking saubhāgya and protection.

Characters & Entities

• Śacī
• Śacīśa
• Indreśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī’s shrines address household dharma too—devotional worship is linked with saubhāgya and auspicious living.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Śacīśa in Kāśī, situated south of Indreśvara and associated with Śacī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Arcana (formal worship) of Śacīśa, especially recommended for women seeking saubhāgya.