Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 14

Devanagari script

अनेन गजवक्त्रेण स्वबुद्धिविभवेरिह । काशीप्राप्तिर्यथा मे स्यात्तथा किंचिदनुष्ठितम्

Transliteration

anena gajavaktreṇa svabuddhivibhaveriha | kāśīprāptiryathā me syāttathā kiṃcidanuṣṭhitam

Translation

اسی گج وَکتر (ہاتھی مُکھ) نے اپنی ہی دانائی کے جلال سے یہاں کچھ ایسا انوشتھان کیا کہ مجھے کاشی کی رسائی نصیب ہوئی۔

Word by Word

• anena: by this
• anena: Karana (Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (इदम्) (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक; तृतीया, एकवचन — 'by/with this'

• gaja-vaktreṇa: with the elephant-faced one
• gaja-vaktreṇa: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaja (गज) + vaktra (वक्त्र) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया, एकवचन — 'with the elephant-face' (i.e., Gaṇeśa)

• sva-buddhi-vibhavena: by the power of (one’s) own intellect
• sva-buddhi-vibhavena: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (स्व) + buddhi (बुद्धि) + vibhava (विभव) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया, एकवचन — 'by the power of (his/my) own intellect'

• iha: here
• iha: Kriya-viseshana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (इह)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) — 'here'

• kāśī-prāptiḥ: attainment of Kāśī
• kāśī-prāptiḥ: Karta (Subject of syāt)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (काशी) + prāpti (प्राप्ति) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन — 'attainment of Kāśī'

• yathā: so that/as
• yathā: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (यथा)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction/adverb) — 'as/so that'

• me: my
• me: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (अस्मद्) (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी/चतुर्थी-एकवचन रूप (enclitic) — here षष्ठी 'of me/my'

• syāt: may be
• syāt: Kriya (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — 'may be'

• tathā: thus
• tathā: Kriya-viseshana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (तथा)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) — 'thus/accordingly'

• kiṃcit: something
• kiṃcit: Karman (Object/predicate complement with anuṣṭhitam)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kiṃcid (किंचिद्) (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — 'something/a little'

• anuṣṭhitam: has been performed
• anuṣṭhitam: Kriya (Predicate/result)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu-ṣṭhā (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — 'performed/done'

Speaker

Śiva

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (as siddhi attained)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devas/Gaṇeśa in-scene; broader audience via narration

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva credits the elephant-faced Gaṇeśa’s own brilliance of wisdom for undertaking a decisive act here, ensuring Śiva’s attainment of Kāśī.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṇeśa (Gajavaktra)
• Kāśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Wisdom and divine agency remove obstacles: Gaṇeśa’s बुद्धि (buddhi) becomes the means for attaining the highest sacred goal represented by Kāśī.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī (Vārāṇasī), described as a supreme attainment (prāpti) even for exalted beings.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Only the general notion of anuṣṭhāna (a performed undertaking); no specific vrata, snāna, or dāna is named in this verse.