Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 97

Devanagari script

इति ब्राह्मणवेषेण वाराणस्यां महाधिया । द्रुहिणेन स्थितं तावद्यावद्विश्वेश्वरागमः

Transliteration

iti brāhmaṇaveṣeṇa vārāṇasyāṃ mahādhiyā | druhiṇena sthitaṃ tāvadyāvadviśveśvarāgamaḥ

Translation

ਇਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਬ੍ਰਾਹਮਣ ਦਾ ਵੇਸ਼ ਧਾਰ ਕੇ ਅਤੇ ਮਹਾਨ ਬੁੱਧੀ ਨਾਲ, ਦ੍ਰੁਹਿਣ (ਬ੍ਰਹਮਾ) ਵਾਰਾਣਸੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਓਦੋਂ ਤੱਕ ਟਿਕਿਆ ਰਿਹਾ ਜਦੋਂ ਤੱਕ ਵਿਸ਼ਵੇਸ਼ਵਰ (ਸ਼ਿਵ) ਦਾ ਆਗਮਨ ਨਾ ਹੋਇਆ।

Word by Word

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Discourse marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; वाक्यसमाप्ति/उद्धरणसूचक (quotative particle)

• brāhmaṇa-veṣeṇa: by/with the guise of a brāhmaṇa
• brāhmaṇa-veṣeṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + veṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (brāhmaṇasya veṣaḥ)

• vārāṇasyām: in Vārāṇasī
• vārāṇasyām: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vārāṇasī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; अधिकरण

• mahā-dhiyā: with great intelligence
• mahā-dhiyā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + dhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; कर्मधारय (mahā dhiḥ)

• druhiṇena: by Druhiṇa (Brahmā)
• druhiṇena: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: druhiṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• sthitam: stood/remained
• sthitam: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sthā (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; भावे/कर्मणि अर्थ (stood/remaining)

• tāvat: so long
• tāvat: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tāvat (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाण/कालवाचक (so long/that long)

• yāvat: until
• yāvat: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yāvat (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; यावत्-तावत् सम्बन्धे कालवाचक (until/as long as)

• viśveśvara-āgamaḥ: the arrival of Viśveśvara
• viśveśvara-āgamaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viśva-īśvara (प्रातिपदिक) + āgama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (viśveśvarasya āgamaḥ)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogues commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vārāṇasī (Kāśī) under Viśveśvara’s lordship

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇa interlocutor / Naimiṣāraṇya sages

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brahmā, veiled as a learned brāhmaṇa, stands in a Kāśī lane near shrines, quietly waiting; the atmosphere is charged with expectancy for Viśveśvara’s arrival.

Characters & Entities

• Vārāṇasī
• Druhiṇa (Brahmā)
• Viśveśvara (Śiva)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine beings themselves honor Kāśī; the city is portrayed as a meeting-ground of highest deities and dharmic purpose.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vārāṇasī/Kāśī broadly, with the impending focus on Viśveśvara’s presence.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse advances the narrative of Brahmā’s stay and Śiva’s arrival.