Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

सुखं हि सर्वैराकांक्ष्यं तच्च धर्मसमुद्भवम् । तस्माद्धर्मोत्र कर्तव्यश्चातुर्वर्ण्येन यत्नतः

Transliteration

sukhaṃ hi sarvairākāṃkṣyaṃ tacca dharmasamudbhavam | tasmāddharmotra kartavyaścāturvarṇyena yatnataḥ

Translation

Kebahagiaan memang diidamkan oleh semua, dan ia lahir daripada dharma. Oleh itu, di dunia ini, keempat-empat varṇa hendaklah berusaha bersungguh-sungguh mengamalkan dharma.

Word by Word

• सुखम्: happiness
• सुखम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (Emphasis/Reason marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), निश्चय/हेतु

• सर्वैः: by all
• सर्वैः: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; ‘by all (people)’

• आकाङ्क्ष्यम्: is to be desired
• आकाङ्क्ष्यम्: Kriya (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + काङ्क्ष् (धातु) + यत् (कृत्)
• Form: यत्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (gerundive/fit to be desired), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘to be desired’

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय

• धर्मसमुद्भवम्: arising from dharma
• धर्मसमुद्भवम्: Kriya (Predicate adjective/विशेषण-भाव)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धर्म + समुद्भव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (धर्मात् समुद्भवम्)

• तस्मात्: therefore
• तस्मात्: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, पञ्चमी (5th/पञ्चमी), एकवचन; हेत्वर्थे ‘therefore/from that’

• धर्मः: dharma
• धर्मः: Karma (Object of obligation/कर्तव्यस्य कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• उत्र: here
• उत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देश-अव्यय (locative adverb) ‘here’

• कर्तव्यः: should be practiced/done
• कर्तव्यः: Kriya (Obligation/विधेय-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु) + तव्यत् (कृत्)
• Form: तव्यत्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (gerundive), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘should be done’

• चातुर्वर्ण्येन: by the fourfold social order
• चातुर्वर्ण्येन: Karana (Instrument/Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चातुर्वर्ण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः (चतुर् + वर्ण) + य-प्रत्यय (collective)

• यत्नतः: diligently
• यत्नतः: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्नतः (अव्यय)
• Form: रीत्या/प्रकार-अव्यय (adverb) ‘with effort’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A panoramic Kāśī scene showing four representative figures (brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra) each performing dharmic acts—teaching/ritual, protection/justice, trade with honesty/charity, service with devotion—converging at Viśveśvara temple and Gaṅgā ghāṭs, symbolizing shared pursuit of sukha through dharma.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True happiness is dharma-born; therefore disciplined dharma-practice is urged as a universal social-spiritual duty.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The chapter is within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa (Kāśī/Vārāṇasī sacred landscape), though this verse is a general dharma exhortation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No single ritual is specified; it prescribes earnest practice of dharma according to one’s station (cāturvarṇya).