Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

शंभुस्तत्किंचिदाचष्टे म्रियमाणस्य जन्मिनः । कर्णेऽक्षरं यदाकर्ण्य मृतोप्यमृततां व्रजेत्

Transliteration

śaṃbhustatkiṃcidācaṣṭe mriyamāṇasya janminaḥ | karṇe'kṣaraṃ yadākarṇya mṛtopyamṛtatāṃ vrajet

Translation

شمبھو مرتے ہوئے انسان کے کان میں ایک مقدس حرف ادا کرتا ہے؛ اس لازوال آواز کو سن کر، مر چکا بھی بے موتی (امرتا) کو پہنچ جاتا ہے۔

Word by Word

• śambhuḥ: Śambhu (Śiva)
• śambhuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śambhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; अन्वयः ‘तत् (अक्षरम्/वचनम्)’

• kiṃcit: something
• kiṃcit: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kiṃcit (सर्वनाम/अव्यय-प्रयोग)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; अल्पपरिमाणवाचक ‘something’

• ācaṣṭe: tells/declares
• ācaṣṭe: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ācakṣ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• mriyamāṇasya: of one who is dying
• mriyamāṇasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mṛ (धातु) → mriyamāṇa (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: शानच्-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमान-कृदन्त (present passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन; विशेषण of ‘janminaḥ’

• janminaḥ: of the embodied being
• janminaḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janmin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन

• karṇe: in the ear
• karṇe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन

• akṣaram: a syllable (mantra-syllable)
• akṣaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: akṣara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• yadā: when
• yadā: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: काल-अव्यय (temporal adverb: when)

• ākarṇya: having heard
• ākarṇya: Sambandha (Conjunctive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ā-karṇ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (gerund): ‘having heard’

• mṛtaḥ: dead
• mṛtaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mṛta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त (past participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अपि-अव्यय (particle: even/also)

• amṛtatām: immortality
• amṛtatām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a-mṛta-tā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; तद्धितान्त भाववाचक ‘-तā’

• vrajet: would attain/go to
• vrajet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vraj (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (contextual attribution within Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogues)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śambhu close to the ear of a dying person, whispering a single luminous syllable; the syllable depicted as subtle light; the soul rising peacefully; Gaṅgā and Kāśī skyline faintly behind.

Characters & Entities

• Śambhu
• Śiva
• Akṣara (sacred syllable)
• Kāśī (implied by context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Liberation is ultimately grace: Śiva’s imparted mantra transforms the fate of the dying into amṛtatva (mokṣa).

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is implied as the setting where this special karṇa-upadeśa of Śiva is famed to occur.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Hearing/receiving the sacred akṣara (mantra-syllable) in the ear at life’s end—Śiva’s karṇa-upadeśa motif.