Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 61

Devanagari script

यतः सर्वेषु लिंगेषु लिंगमेतदनुत्तमम् । तत्कारणं शृण्व पर्णे कर्णे कुरु वदाम्यहम्

Transliteration

yataḥ sarveṣu liṃgeṣu liṃgametadanuttamam | tatkāraṇaṃ śṛṇva parṇe karṇe kuru vadāmyaham

Translation

เพราะในบรรดาลึงค์ทั้งปวง ลึงค์นี้ยอดยิ่งหาที่เปรียบมิได้; โอ้ ปารวตี จงฟังเหตุแห่งนั้น—จงเงี่ยหูรับไว้ เราจักกล่าวให้ฟัง

Word by Word

• यतः: because
• यतः: Hetu (Cause marker/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यतः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction/relative adverb), हेतौ ‘because/since’

• सर्वेषु: in all
• सर्वेषु: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (locative plural)

• लिङ्गेषु: among liṅgas
• लिङ्गेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, बहुवचन (neuter, locative plural)

• लिङ्गम्: the liṅga
• लिङ्गम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (neuter nom./acc. sg.)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम-विशेषण (neuter nom./acc. sg.)

• अनुत्तमम्: unsurpassed; supreme
• अनुत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनुत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (neuter nom./acc. sg.)

• तत्-कारणम्: the reason for that
• तत्-कारणम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तत् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + कारण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (neuter, accusative singular)

• शृण्व: listen
• शृण्व: Kriya (Command/आज्ञा)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद (2nd sg.)

• पर्णे: O Parṇa
• पर्णे: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन विभक्ति, एकवचन (vocative singular); संबोधन (address)

• कर्णे: O ear (i.e., listen attentively)
• कर्णे: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन विभक्ति, एकवचन (vocative singular)

• कुरु: do; make
• कुरु: Kriya (Command/आज्ञा)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद (2nd sg.)

• वदामि: I speak
• वदामि: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वद् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद (1st sg.)

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुषवाचक सर्वनाम, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन (pronoun, nominative singular)

Speaker

Śiva (deduced from address to Pārvatī and explanatory setup)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Triviṣṭapa-liṅga

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pārvatī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva turns toward Pārvatī, raising a hand in teaching gesture; Pārvatī inclines her head, ‘lending her ear’; the Kāśī liṅga shrine glows in the background, signaling an imminent origin story.

Characters & Entities

• Pārvatī (Pārṇā)
• Śiva-liṅga
• Trilocana (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Scripture frames certain tīrthas and liṅgas as uniquely ‘anuttama’, inviting attentive listening to their theological rationale.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The context continues the praise of the Triviṣṭapa/Trilocana Liṅga in Kāśī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it introduces an explanation (kāraṇa) for the Liṅga’s exceptional status.