Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 39

Devanagari script

कृपणोपि वदान्यः स्याद्वदान्यः कृपणो यदि । प्रकृतेर्विकृतिश्चेत्स्यात्तदा पंचत्वमृच्छति

Transliteration

kṛpaṇopi vadānyaḥ syādvadānyaḥ kṛpaṇo yadi | prakṛtervikṛtiścetsyāttadā paṃcatvamṛcchati

Translation

หากคนตระหนี่กลับกลายเป็นผู้เอื้อเฟื้อ หรือผู้เอื้อเฟื้อกลับกลายเป็นคนตระหนี่—เมื่อความประพฤติผิดเพี้ยนจากสันดานเดิม—ผู้นั้นย่อมถึง “ปัญจัตวะ” คือสลายคืนสู่ธาตุทั้งห้า อันเป็นมรณะ

Word by Word

• कृपणः: a miser/wretched person
• कृपणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृपण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्भावना/समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (even/also)

• वदान्यः: generous
• वदान्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वदान्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• स्यात्: may become / could be
• स्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• वदान्यः: a generous person
• वदान्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वदान्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• कृपणः: miserly
• कृपणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृपण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; वदान्यः इत्यस्य विशेषण-रूपेण (if generous becomes miserly)

• यदि: if
• यदि: Sambandha (Condition)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदि (अव्यय)
• Form: शर्तार्थक-अव्यय (conditional particle)

• प्रकृतेः: of (one’s) nature
• प्रकृतेः: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रकृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• विकृतिः: change/distortion
• विकृतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विकृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• चेत्: if
• चेत्: Sambandha (Condition)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: चेत् (अव्यय)
• Form: शर्तार्थक-अव्यय (if)

• स्यात्: should occur/be
• स्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• तदा: then
• तदा: Sambandha (Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (then)

• पञ्चत्वम्: the state of the five elements (i.e., death)
• पञ्चत्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पञ्चत्व (प्रातिपदिक; पञ्च + त्व)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; भाववाचक-त्व-प्रत्यय (state of being fivefold; idiomatically death)

• ऋच्छति: reaches/attains
• ऋच्छति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ऋ (धातु; ऋच्छ्-आदेश)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Kāśī-mahātmya audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A split-panel allegory: on one side a miser suddenly gives away wealth; on the other a generous man clutches coins—both under the shadow of the five elements reclaiming the body (earth-water-fire-air-ether motifs) and a cremation-ghāṭ horizon.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A sudden reversal in one’s moral tendencies is treated as a serious sign; therefore one should stabilize the mind in dharma and seek the highest refuge in Śiva.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader Kāśīkhaṇḍa context points to Kāśī as the sacred geography where liberation is made accessible through Viśveśvara.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is stated; the verse identifies an inner sign (character inversion) to prompt immediate spiritual discipline.