Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 72

Devanagari script

ततोपि हि वरं वीर तीर्थं मांधातुसंज्ञितम् । चक्रवर्तिपदं यत्र प्राप्तं तेन महीभुजा

Transliteration

tatopi hi varaṃ vīra tīrthaṃ māṃdhātusaṃjñitam | cakravartipadaṃ yatra prāptaṃ tena mahībhujā

Translation

Higit pa riyan, O bayani, ang banal na tīrtha na tinatawag na Māndhātu. Dito natamo ng haring tagapangalaga ng daigdig ang katayuang cakravartin, ang pangkalahatang emperador.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: thereafter/from that
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; अपादान/तसिल्-अर्थे (ablatival adverb): "ततः" = "from that/thereafter"

• api: also/even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधान/समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (particle: also/even)

• hi: indeed/for
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; हेत्वर्थक-निपात (particle: indeed/for)

• varam: better/superior
• varam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (Nom/Acc sg); विशेषणम्

• vīra: O hero
• vīra: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचन (Voc sg)

• tīrtham: sacred ford/pilgrimage place
• tīrtham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (Nom/Acc sg)

• māṃdhātu-saṃjñitam: named Māndhātu
• māṃdhātu-saṃjñitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: māṃdhātu (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃjñita (कृदन्त; √jñā (ज्ञा) + सम् उपसर्ग, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: "मांधातोः संज्ञा यस्य तत्")

• cakravarti-padam: the status/position of a universal monarch
• cakravarti-padam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cakravartin (प्रातिपदिक) + pada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: "चक्रवर्तिनः पदम्")

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-सम्बन्धबोधक (relative adverb: where)

• prāptam: was attained
• prāptam: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √āp (आप्) + pra उपसर्ग, क्त (प्राप्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; कर्मणि/भावे प्रयोगे: "was attained"

• tena: by him/thereby
• tena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक; तृतीया एकवचन (Instr sg)

• mahī-bhujā: by the king (earth-bearer)
• mahī-bhujā: Karana (Instrument/Agent-in-passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक) + bhuj (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया एकवचन (Instr sg); तत्पुरुष-समास (कर्मधारय/षष्ठीभाव: "मह्याः भुजः" = earth-holder/king)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśī Khaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Māndhātu-tīrtha

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A radiant Kāśī riverbank tīrtha with a crowned king (Māndhātṛ) receiving a cakra-emblem of sovereignty amid Vedic priests, with Śiva’s unseen grace implied by a liṅga shrine and luminous aura over the Ganga.

Characters & Entities

• Māndhātu
• Cakravartin

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kāśī’s tīrthas are portrayed as powerfully transformative—capable of elevating one’s destiny and dharmic stature.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Māndhātu Tīrtha, presented as superior among nearby sacred fords in this sequence.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is stated here; the verse emphasizes the tīrtha’s proven fruit through Māndhātu’s attainment.