Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

निर्वाणनगरी काशी काशी सर्वाघसंघहृत् । विश्वेशितुः प्रिया काशी द्यौः काशी सदृशी नहि

Transliteration

nirvāṇanagarī kāśī kāśī sarvāghasaṃghahṛt | viśveśituḥ priyā kāśī dyauḥ kāśī sadṛśī nahi

Translation

กาสีคือนครแห่งนิพพาน กาสีขจัดมวลบาปทั้งปวง กาสีเป็นที่รักของพระวิศเวศวร แม้แต่สวรรค์ก็ไม่อาจเทียบเคียงกาสีได้

Word by Word

• निर्वाणनगरी: the city of nirvāṇa
• निर्वाणनगरी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निर्वाण + नगरी (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; समासः—निर्वाणस्य नगरी (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• काशी: Kāśī
• काशी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• काशी: Kāśī
• काशी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सर्वाघसंघहृत्: remover of all heaps of sins
• सर्वाघसंघहृत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व + अघ + संघ + हृत् (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘काशी’विशेषणम्; समासः—सर्वेषाम् अघानां संघं हरति इति (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/उपपद-समास)

• विश्वेशितुः: of the Lord of the universe
• विश्वेशितुः: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्वेशितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन; समासः—विश्वस्य ईशिता (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• प्रिया: beloved
• प्रिया: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रिय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘काशी’विशेषणम्

• काशी: Kāśī
• काशी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• द्यौः: heaven/sky
• द्यौः: Upamana (Standard of comparison/उपमान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्यौ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (वैदिके पुं/स्त्री), प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• काशी: Kāśī
• काशी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सदृशी: similar/equal
• सदृशी: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सदृश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘काशी’विशेषणम्

• नहि: indeed not/there is not
• नहि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नहि (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation particle), ‘न’ + ‘हि’

Speaker

Bṛhaspati

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī / Avimukta

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Kāśī depicted as a radiant city of liberation: Viśveśa enthroned in subtle form above the ghāṭas; sins personified dissolving into light; svarga shown faintly in the distance, outshone by Kāśī.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśī
• Nirvāṇa
• Viśveśa (Śiva)
• Dyauḥ (heaven)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The highest aim is not heavenly enjoyment but nirvāṇa/mukti, and Kāśī is praised as the foremost means-place for it.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), explicitly called the Nirvāṇa-nagarī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is stated; the verse is a doctrinal praise of Kāśī’s salvific status.