Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

क्षारस्वादूदयोरेव यदासीज्जलदर्शनम् । प्रथिव्यां नरसंचारे वतर्माने क्वचित्क्वचित्

Transliteration

kṣārasvādūdayoreva yadāsījjaladarśanam | prathivyāṃ narasaṃcāre vatarmāne kvacitkvacit

Translation

భూమిపై మనుష్యుల సంచారమధ్య నీరు ఎక్కడోక్కడ మాత్రమే కనిపించి, అది కూడా ఉప్పగా లేదా తీపిగా మాత్రమే ఉన్నప్పుడు—అప్పుడు నీటి కొరత స్పష్టమైంది।

Word by Word

• kṣāra-svāda-udayayoḥ: of the arising of salty taste and (other) taste
• kṣāra-svāda-udayayoḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣāra (प्रातिपदिक) + svāda (प्रातिपदिक) + udaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), द्विवचन; (क्षारस्य स्वादस्य च उदययोः)

• eva: indeed/only
• eva: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• yadā: when
• yadā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• āsīt: was
• āsīt: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/past), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• jala-darśanam: sight/appearance of water
• jala-darśanam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक) + darśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (जलस्य दर्शनम्)

• prathivyām: on the earth
• prathivyām: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prathivī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th case), एकवचन

• nara-saṃcāre: in the movement/traffic of people
• nara-saṃcāre: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃcāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th case), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (नराणां सञ्चारः)

• vartamāne: while occurring/going on
• vartamāne: Adhikarana (Circumstance/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vṛt (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्त (शतृ/शानच्), सप्तमी (7th case), एकवचन, पुं/नपुंसक; (सप्तमी-सम्बन्धे)

• kvacit: somewhere
• kvacit: Adhikarana (Place/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kvacit (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• kvacit: here and there
• kvacit: Adhikarana (Place/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kvacit (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb), पुनरुक्ति (repetition for distributive sense)

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (implied as antidote to scarcity)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Travelers scattered across a vast plain, finding only occasional pools—some brackish, some sweet—testing and tasting water; the sense of ‘here and there’ rarity dominates the composition.

Characters & Entities

• Pṛthivī (earth)
• Jala (water)
• Nara (people)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly supports become scarce and unreliable; therefore one should turn to the enduring spiritual support of a liberating tīrtha and steady dharmic practice.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The chapter context is the glorification of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) as the supreme kṣetra, contrasted with hardship elsewhere.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; the verse sets the scene of scarcity that affects daily and ritual life.