Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 57

Devanagari script

साक्षाच्च सर्वे मंत्रा वै साक्षाद्यज्ञपुमानसौ । आचार्यपदवीमेष देवाचार्यः स्वयं चरेत् । साक्षाद्ब्रह्मा स्वयं चैष भृगुर्वै कर्मकांडवित्

Transliteration

sākṣācca sarve maṃtrā vai sākṣādyajñapumānasau | ācāryapadavīmeṣa devācāryaḥ svayaṃ caret | sākṣādbrahmā svayaṃ caiṣa bhṛgurvai karmakāṃḍavit

Translation

Dan semua mantra hendaklah hadir seolah-olah secara nyata; bahkan Pribadi Yajña sendiri hendaklah termanifest. Kedudukan ācārya patut dijalankan oleh guru para dewa sendiri. Brahmā sendiri hendaklah hadir, dan Bhṛgu—yang mengetahui bahagian ritual (karma-kāṇḍa)—juga demikian.

Word by Word

• sākṣāt: directly
• sākṣāt: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sākṣāt (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (directly)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• sarve: all
• sarve: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• maṃtrāḥ: mantras
• maṃtrāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maṃtra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक/अनुनासिक-निपात (emphatic particle)

• sākṣāt: directly
• sākṣāt: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sākṣāt (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय

• yajña-pumān: the sacrifice-person (Yajña personified)
• yajña-pumān: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yajña (प्रातिपदिक) + pumān/puman (पुमन्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (‘यज्ञः एव पुमान्’); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• asau: that one (he)
• asau: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (अदस्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम (demonstrative)

• ācārya-padavīm: the status/position of an ācārya
• ācārya-padavīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ācārya (प्रातिपदिक) + padavī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (‘आचार्यस्य पदवी’); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Acc./2nd), एकवचन

• eṣaḥ: this one (he)
• eṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (एतद्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• deva-ācāryaḥ: teacher of the gods
• deva-ācāryaḥ: Karta (Predicate noun/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + ācārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (‘देवानाम् आचार्यः’); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• svayam: himself
• svayam: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: svayam (अव्यय)
• Form: स्वार्थक-अव्यय

• caret: should act/perform
• caret: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: car (चर् धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• sākṣāt: directly
• sākṣāt: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sākṣāt (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय

• brahmā: Brahmā
• brahmā: Karta (Predicate noun/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (ब्रह्मन्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• svayam: himself
• svayam: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: svayam (अव्यय)
• Form: स्वार्थक-अव्यय

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• eṣaḥ: this one (he)
• eṣaḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (एतद्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• bhṛguḥ: Bhṛgu
• bhṛguḥ: Karta (Predicate noun/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhṛgu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• karma-kāṇḍa-vit: knower of ritual section (karma-kāṇḍa)
• karma-kāṇḍa-vit: Karta (Predicate noun/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karma-kāṇḍa (कर्म + काण्ड) + vit (विद् धातु → वित् ‘knower’)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (‘कर्मकाण्डं वेत्ति’); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa norm)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cosmic yajña: luminous mantras as personified syllabic beings hover; Yajña-Puruṣa stands radiant; a divine guru officiates; Brahmā and Bhṛgu sit as authoritative witnesses.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Bhṛgu
• Yajña

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True ritual legitimacy is extraordinarily rare; it requires flawless mantra, realized yajña-spirit, and unimpeachable priestly authority.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Though not naming a tirtha, the teaching reflects Kāśī-khaṇḍa’s dharmic lens: in Kāśī, inner truth outweighs mere ceremonial display.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

An extreme benchmark for yajña: mantras, Yajña-person, divine ācārya, Brahmā, and Bhṛgu should be present in person.