Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

अनेकजन्मजनित महापापाद्रिवज्रिणि । नामोच्चारकृतां पुंसां महाश्रेयो विधायिनि

Transliteration

anekajanmajanita mahāpāpādrivajriṇi | nāmoccārakṛtāṃ puṃsāṃ mahāśreyo vidhāyini

Translation

Wahai Kāśī! Engkau laksana vajra yang memecahkan gunung dosa besar yang terkumpul dari banyak kelahiran. Dengan sekadar menyebut namamu, engkau mengurniakan kebajikan tertinggi kepada insan.

Word by Word

• अनेकजन्मजनित: produced from many births
• अनेकजन्मजनित: Qualifier (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनेक-जन्म-जनित (प्रातिपदिक; अनेक + जन्म + जनित)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/सम्बोधन-एकवचन (विशेषणरूपेण); भूतकृदन्त (क्त) 'जनित' = produced; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (अनेकजन्मभिः जनितः)

• महापापाद्रिवज्रिणि: O thunderbolt to the mountain of great sins
• महापापाद्रिवज्रिणि: Sambodhana/Address (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महापाप-अद्रि-वज्रिणी (प्रातिपदिक; महापाप + अद्रि + वज्रिणी)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (महापापरूपः अद्रिः; तस्मिन् वज्रिणी = thunderbolt)

• नामोच्चारकृताम्: of those who have performed the utterance of the name
• नामोच्चारकृताम्: Shashthi-sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाम-उच्चार-कृत (प्रातिपदिक; नाम + उच्चार + कृत)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त) 'कृत' = done; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (नाम्नः उच्चारः कृतः)

• पुंसाम्: of men/people
• पुंसाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुंस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन

• महाश्रेयः: great welfare/highest good
• महाश्रेयः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाश्रेयस् (प्रातिपदिक; महा + श्रेयस्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महत् श्रेयः)

• विधायिनि: O bestower
• विधायिनि: Sambodhana/Address (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि-√धा (धातु) → विधायिन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; वर्तमानकृदन्त (णिनि/इनि-प्रत्यय) 'विधायिन्' = one who bestows/ordains

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A colossal dark mountain labeled ‘mahāpāpa’ cracks as a luminous thunderbolt marked ‘Kāśī-nāma’ strikes; devotees with folded hands utter the name, and light radiates toward a distant Viśveśvara shrine and Gaṅgā.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Nāma (name-utterance)
• Pāpa (sin)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even remembrance and utterance of Kāśī’s name is taught as a potent purifier that destroys deep-rooted sin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī itself, praised as pāpa-hara (sin-destroying) through its very name.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Nāma-uccāra (uttering the holy name of Kāśī) is highlighted as a spiritually efficacious act.