Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 75

Devanagari script

श्रेयसां साधनान्यत्र पापघ्नान्यपि सर्वथा । परं हि परमश्चैष नियमो यस्त्वया कृतः

Transliteration

śreyasāṃ sādhanānyatra pāpaghnānyapi sarvathā | paraṃ hi paramaścaiṣa niyamo yastvayā kṛtaḥ

Translation

Dito’y may mga paraan tungo sa pinakamataas na kabutihan, at mga gawang pumupuksa sa kasalanan sa lahat ng paraan. Ngunit ang disiplinang iyong tinanggap ay siyang kataas-taasan—oo, ang pinakamataas.

Word by Word

• śreyasām: of auspicious goods / of welfare
• śreyasām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śreyas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन — Genitive plural (of welfare/auspicious good)

• sādhanāni: means, instruments
• sādhanāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sādhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/प्रथमा or 2nd/द्वितीया), बहुवचन — Nominative/Accusative plural

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb: here)

• pāpa-ghnāni: sin-destroying
• pāpa-ghnāni: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + ghná (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन — Nominative/Accusative plural; तत्पुरुषः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: pāpasya ghnāni)

• api: also, even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — निपात (particle: also/even)

• sarvathā: in every way, always
• sarvathā: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: in every way/always)

• param: supreme
• param: Visheshya (Predicate complement/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Nominative/Accusative singular (used predicatively)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — निपात (emphatic particle: indeed/for)

• paramaḥ: the highest
• paramaḥ: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — Nominative singular

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — समुच्चय (conjunction: and)

• eṣaḥ: this
• eṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Pronoun: Nominative singular (this)

• niyamaḥ: rule, observance
• niyamaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niyama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Nominative singular

• yaḥ: which
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Relative pronoun: Nominative singular (who/which)

• tvayā: by you
• tvayā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/स्त्री (सर्वनाम), तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — Instrumental singular (by you)

• kṛtaḥ: done, performed
• kṛtaḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु) + kta (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (भूतकर्मणि/कर्तरि क्त-प्रत्यय), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Past participle: done/made

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Avimukta-Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and ṛṣis (typical frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A serene ascetic/pilgrim in Kāśī receives instruction that many practices exist, yet a particular niyama is supreme; the city’s ghāṭs and a Śiva shrine form the backdrop.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Jaigīṣavya
• Niyama
• Śreyas
• Pāpa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Among many meritorious disciplines, one particular observance is elevated as the highest—signaling a hierarchy of values rooted in devotion and right offering.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is the textual setting; the verse contributes to Kāśī’s mahātmya by presenting it as a place where supreme dharma is taught by Śiva.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The “supreme niyama” is referenced but not yet defined in this verse; the next verse clarifies it in terms of eating only after darśana/offerings.