Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 94

Devanagari script

समं समांसं सुस्निग्धं स्वामोदं वर्तुलं मुखम् । जनेतृवदनच्छायं धन्यानामिह जायते

Transliteration

samaṃ samāṃsaṃ susnigdhaṃ svāmodaṃ vartulaṃ mukham | janetṛvadanacchāyaṃ dhanyānāmiha jāyate

Translation

சமமாகவும் சதை நிறைந்தும் மென்மையாக ஒளிவிடவும் இயல்பான மணம் உடையதும் வட்டமுமான முகம், தாய்முகத்தின் மென்மையான கதிரொளியைத் தாங்கியதாக இருப்பது—இத்தகைய முகமே இங்கு பாக்கியவான்களுக்குரியது।

Word by Word

• samaṃ: even / symmetrical
• samaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd: Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular)

• samāṃsaṃ: fleshy / with flesh
• samāṃsaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa-māṃsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन; उपसर्ग/उपपद ‘sa-’ (सहित) + māṃsa

• susnigdhaṃ: very smooth / glossy
• susnigdhaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su-snigdha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; उपपद ‘su-’ + snigdha

• svāmodaṃ: having its own fragrance
• svāmodaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sva-āmōda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः sva + āmoda

• vartulaṃ: round
• vartulaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vartula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• mukham: face
• mukham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mukha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• janetṛ: of the begetter / father
• janetṛ: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: janetṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular) (समासपूर्वपद-रूप)

• vadana: face
• vadana: Samāsa-aṅga
• Type: Noun
• Root: vadana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (समासाङ्ग)

• acchāyaṃ: not resembling / without the likeness
• acchāyaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-cchāyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुषः a- + chāyā ‘shadow/semblance’

• janetṛvadanacchāyaṃ: not having the likeness of the father’s face
• janetṛvadanacchāyaṃ: Viśeṣaṇa (of mukham)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: janetṛ + vadana + a-cchāyā (प्रातिपदिकसमूह)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष) janetṛ-vadana + (नञ्-तत्पुरुष) acchāya

• dhanyānām: of the fortunate (people)
• dhanyānām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhanya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन (Plural)

• iha: here
• iha: Deśa-adhikaraṇa (Locative setting)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• jāyate: is born / arises
• jāyate: Kriyā
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपदम्

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda instructing Agastya)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Portrait-like focus on a symmetrical, rounded, lustrous face with a soft maternal radiance; floral elements suggest natural fragrance; Kāśī’s sacred-town atmosphere subtly present.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī (context)
• Skanda (context)
• Agastya (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Auspiciousness is portrayed as harmony, softness, and purity—qualities that symbolically mirror inner well-being and good fortune.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse itself is not a tīrtha-praise; it sits within the Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s larger Kāśī-māhātmya framework.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is descriptive (lakṣaṇa), not prescriptive (vidhi).