Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

शिवशर्मोवाच । अहो गणौ विचित्रेयं श्रुता चांद्रमसी कथा । उडुलोककथां ख्यातं विष्वगाख्यानकोविदौ

Transliteration

śivaśarmovāca | aho gaṇau vicitreyaṃ śrutā cāṃdramasī kathā | uḍulokakathāṃ khyātaṃ viṣvagākhyānakovidau

Translation

Śivaśarman nói: Ôi, hỡi hai vị gaṇa, câu chuyện về Candra mà ta vừa nghe thật kỳ diệu! Hai vị nổi danh là bậc thiện xảo trong thuật kể chuyện, tinh thông việc thuật lại truyền thuyết lẫy lừng về Uḍu-loka, cõi sao trời.

Word by Word

• śivaśarmā: Śivaśarman
• śivaśarmā: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śivaśarman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; नाम (प्रातिपदिकान्त-रूप)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Speech act)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (वच् धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• aho: ah!
• aho: Sambandha (Exclamation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: aho (अव्यय)
• Form: विस्मयादिबोधक निपात (interjection)

• gaṇau: O two gaṇas
• gaṇau: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), द्विवचन

• vicitrā: wonderful/strange
• vicitrā: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vicitra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ‘कथा’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• iyam: this
• iyam: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ‘कथा’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• śrutā: heard
• śrutā: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śruta (श्रु धातु, क्त-कृदन्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; ‘कथा’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction)

• āṃdramasī: lunar (pertaining to the Moon)
• āṃdramasī: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: āṃdramasī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ‘कथा’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• kathā: the story
• kathā: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kathā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• uḍu-loka-kathām: the story of the star-world
• uḍu-loka-kathām: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uḍu (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक) + kathā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; ‘उडुलोकस्य कथा’ (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• khyātam: is renowned
• khyātam: Kriya (Predicative)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: khyāta (ख्यै धातु, क्त-कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; भावे/कर्मणि—‘प्रसिद्धम्’

• viśvag-ākhyāna-kovidau: you two, skilled in narrations everywhere
• viśvag-ākhyāna-kovidau: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: viśvag (अव्यय/उपपद) + ākhyāna (प्रातिपदिक) + kovida (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; ‘आख्याने कोविदौ’ (सप्तमी/तत्पुरुष-भाव) + ‘viśvag’ उपपदेन ‘सर्वत्र’ इत्यर्थे

Speaker

Śivaśarman

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Two Viṣṇu-gaṇas (attendants)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śivaśarman, moved with wonder, praises the two attendants for their marvelous lunar tale and their skill in narrating the story of the star-world; the attendants stand poised to continue.

Characters & Entities

• Śivaśarman
• Gaṇa (attendants)
• Cāndramasī kathā
• Uḍuloka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Reverence for sacred lore and its narrators is emphasized; wonder (adbhuta) becomes a doorway to deeper faith and inquiry.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is narrative dialogue; the broader glorification remains within Kāśīkhaṇḍa’s sacred setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it praises and invites further kathā (sacred narration).