Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 49

Devanagari script

मृकंडस्य मुनेस्तीर्थं तद्याम्यामतिनिर्मलम । तत्र स्नानेन मर्त्यानां नापायमरणं क्वचित्

Transliteration

mṛkaṃḍasya munestīrthaṃ tadyāmyāmatinirmalama | tatra snānena martyānāṃ nāpāyamaraṇaṃ kvacit

Translation

തെക്കുദിശയിൽ മൃകണ്ഡ മുനിയുടെ അത്യന്തം നിർമലമായ തീർത്ഥം നിലകൊള്ളുന്നു. അവിടെ സ്നാനം ചെയ്താൽ മർത്ത്യർക്കു ഒരിക്കലും അപായമരണമോ അശുഭമരണമോ സംഭവിക്കുകയില്ല.

Word by Word

• मृकण्डस्य: of Mṛkaṇḍa
• मृकण्डस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृकण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन

• मुनेः: of the sage
• मुनेः: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन

• तीर्थम्: a sacred ford/place of pilgrimage
• तीर्थम्: Karma/Predicate nominal (Object or complement/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/प्रथमा or 2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• तत्: that
• तत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (demonstrative)

• याम्यम्: southern / belonging to Yama
• याम्यम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: याम्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• अतिनिर्मलम्: very pure
• अतिनिर्मलम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अति (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + निर्मल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण; 'अति' उपपद-पूर्वक (very)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb)

• स्नानेन: by bathing
• स्नानेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; करण (instrumental)

• मर्त्यानाम्: of mortals
• मर्त्यानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मर्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन

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

• अपायमरणम्: death that is a calamity / untimely death
• अपायमरणम्: Karma/Predicate nominal (Object or complement/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अपाय (प्रातिपदिक) + मरण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (अपायस्य मरणम्)

• क्वचित्: ever / anywhere
• क्वचित्: Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्वचित् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; काल/देशवाचक (indefinite adverb: at any time/anywhere)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mṛkaṇḍu-tīrtha

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A serene southern Kāśī riverbank: a small tīrtha-spot marked by a simple shrine or liṅga, with a sage-associated emblem; pilgrims bathe with folded hands as the Gaṅgā glows at dawn.

Characters & Entities

• Mṛkaṇḍa
• Kāśī (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī’s tīrthas protect devotees: sincere bathing at a praised ford is said to avert inauspicious, calamity-filled death.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Mṛkaṇḍa-muni’s tīrtha, described as located to the south (yāmyā) within the Kāśī sacred landscape.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (ritual bathing) at the tīrtha.