Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

पठतो मे गतः कालस्तथोपार्जयतो धनम् । नाराधितो महेशानः कर्मनिर्मूलनक्षमः

Transliteration

paṭhato me gataḥ kālastathopārjayato dhanam | nārādhito maheśānaḥ karmanirmūlanakṣamaḥ

Translation

‘ମୋର ସମୟ ପାଠପଢ଼ାରେ ଗଲା, ଏବଂ ଧନ ଉପାର୍ଜନରେ ମଧ୍ୟ; କିନ୍ତୁ କର୍ମମୂଳକୁ ଉପାଡ଼ିଦେବାରେ ସମର୍ଥ ମହେଶାନଙ୍କୁ ମୁଁ ଆରାଧନା କରିନାହିଁ।’

Word by Word

• पठतः: while (I) was studying
• पठतः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive absolute-like/षष्ठी)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पठ् (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त (present active participle), षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘of me who is reading/while I was studying’

• मे: of me/my
• मे: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• गतः: passed
• गतः: Kriya (Predicate adjective/क्रिया-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (कालः) ‘gone/passed’

• कालः: time
• कालः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), ‘thus/likewise’

• उपार्जयतः: while earning
• उपार्जयतः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उप-आर्ज् (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘of me who is earning/while earning’

• धनम्: wealth
• धनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation particle)

• आराधितः: worshipped
• आराधितः: Kriya (Predicate adjective/क्रिया-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-राध् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (महेशानः) ‘worshipped/propitiated’

• महेशानः: Mahēśāna (Śiva)
• महेशानः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + ईशान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (‘महान् ईशानः’)

• कर्मनिर्मूलनक्षमः: capable of uprooting karma
• कर्मनिर्मूलनक्षमः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + निर्मूलन (निर्मूल्/निर्मूलय्, भावप्रातिपदिक) + क्षम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (कर्मणां निर्मूलने क्षमः) विशेषणम् (महेशानः)

Speaker

Śivaśarmā (inner speech/lament within Agastya’s narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śivaśarmā confesses with folded hands, manuscripts and coins set aside; in the background rises a Śiva temple with a liṅga, suggesting the shift from worldly pursuits to worship that uproots karma.

Characters & Entities

• Maheśāna (Śiva)
• Karma

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Learning and prosperity are incomplete without devotion; worship of Śiva, the uprooter of karmic bondage, is presented as essential for true freedom.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is named in the line, but the Kāśīkhaṇḍa framework links Śiva-worship and karmic release to the sacred geography of Kāśī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Ārādhana (worship/propitiation) of Maheśāna (Śiva) is urged implicitly as the remedy for karmic entanglement.