Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

कृतप्रतिज्ञौ तो तूर्णं प्राप्य वाराणसीं पुरीम् । शंकुकर्णमहाकालौ विस्मृत्य शांभवीं गिरम्

Transliteration

kṛtapratijñau to tūrṇaṃ prāpya vārāṇasīṃ purīm | śaṃkukarṇamahākālau vismṛtya śāṃbhavīṃ giram

Translation

Walaupun telah berikrar teguh, Śaṅkukarṇa dan Mahākāla, sebaik sahaja segera tiba di kota Vārāṇasī, telah melupakan bahkan sabda Śambhu (Śiva).

Word by Word

• कृतप्रतिज्ञौ: having made a vow
• कृतप्रतिज्ञौ: Visheshana (Adjective of subject/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृत + प्रतिज्ञा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन (Dual); “कृता प्रतिज्ञा याभ्याम्” (having made a vow)

• तौ: those two
• तौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन (Dual)

• तूर्णम्: quickly
• तूर्णम्: Kriya-viseshana (Adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तूर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• प्राप्य: having reached
• प्राप्य: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + आप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त (gerund/absolutive), “having reached”

• वाराणसीम्: Vārāṇasī
• वाराणसीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाराणसी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• पुरीम्: the city
• पुरीम्: Karma (Appositional object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular); वाराणसीम् इति विशेष्यस्य अप्पोजिशन (apposition)

• शंकुकर्णमहाकालौ: Śaṅkukarṇa and Mahākāla
• शंकुकर्णमहाकालौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शंकुकर्ण + महाकाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन (Dual)

• विस्मृत्य: having forgotten
• विस्मृत्य: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + स्मृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त (gerund/absolutive), “having forgotten”

• शांभवीम्: Śāmbhavī (of Śambhu/Shiva’s)
• शांभवीम्: Visheshana (Adjective of object/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शांभवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• गिरम्: speech/utterance
• गिरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गिर् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration, commonly Skanda to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and ṛṣis

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śaṅkukarṇa and Mahākāla arrive swiftly at Kāśī; their determined faces soften into stunned forgetfulness, as if a luminous wave from the city erases their prepared speech.

Characters & Entities

• Śaṅkukarṇa
• Mahākāla
• Vārāṇasī
• Śambhu (Śiva)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī’s divine potency can overwhelm ordinary mental resolve; spiritual focus must be guarded even in holy places.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vārāṇasī/Kāśī, portrayed as so spiritually charged that it alters perception and memory.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the emphasis is on inner discipline (smṛti) amid sacred influence.