Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

विगृह्य पाणियुग्मेन ताम्रपात्रं सुनिर्मलम् । जानुभ्यामवनिं गत्वा परिपूर्य जलेन च

Transliteration

vigṛhya pāṇiyugmena tāmrapātraṃ sunirmalam | jānubhyāmavaniṃ gatvā paripūrya jalena ca

Translation

ਦੋਵੇਂ ਹੱਥਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਬਹੁਤ ਹੀ ਸੁੱਧ ਤਾਮੇ ਦਾ ਪਾਤ੍ਰ ਚੁੱਕ ਕੇ, ਘੁੱਟਣਿਆਂ ਨਾਲ ਧਰਤੀ ਉੱਤੇ ਝੁਕ ਕੇ, ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਜਲ ਨਾਲ ਪੂਰੀ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਭਰ ਦੇਵੇ।

Word by Word

• vigṛhya: having taken/held
• vigṛhya: Kriya (Gerundial/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-grah (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययम्; ‘having grasped/held’

• pāṇi-yugmena: with both hands
• pāṇi-yugmena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक) + yugma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; ‘पाणि-युग्म’ = pair of hands

• tāmra-pātram: a copper vessel
• tāmra-pātram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāmra (प्रातिपदिक) + pātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; ‘ताम्र-पात्र’ = copper vessel

• su-nirmalam: very pure/clean
• su-nirmalam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (अव्यय-उपसर्ग/प्रातिपदिक) + nirmala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; विशेषणम्—‘very clean/pure’

• jānubhyām: with (both) knees
• jānubhyām: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jānu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, द्विवचनम्; करणम्—‘with the two knees’

• avanim: the ground
• avanim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: avanī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• gatvā: having gone (down)
• gatvā: Kriya (Gerundial/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययम्; ‘having gone (to)’

• paripūrya: having filled completely
• paripūrya: Kriya (Gerundial/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pari-pṝ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययम्; ‘having filled completely’

• jalena: with water
• jalena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चय-बोधकः (conjunction)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Kāśīkhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgā in Kāśī (ghāṭa arghya-sthāna)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrim/householder archetype addressed through the narrative frame

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On stone steps by the river, the practitioner kneels, both hands steadying a polished copper pot, filling it to the brim with clear water; early light reflects off the vessel.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Outer purity and disciplined posture support inner reverence in Vedic-Purāṇic worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The rite is taught within Kāśī’s sacred framework in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Use a spotless copper vessel, kneel, and fill it fully with water for the arghya offering.