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

Tomando com ambas as mãos um vaso de cobre muito limpo, e descendo ao chão sobre os joelhos, deve enchê-lo completamente com água.

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.