Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 85

Devanagari script

तथापि न चतस्रोन्या मया दृग्गोचरीकृताः । तासां प्रभावं विज्ञायाप्यागमिष्याम्य हं पुनः

Transliteration

tathāpi na catasronyā mayā dṛggocarīkṛtāḥ | tāsāṃ prabhāvaṃ vijñāyāpyāgamiṣyāmya haṃ punaḥ

Translation

Dẫu vậy, bốn thánh thành kia vẫn chưa hiện trong tầm mắt ta. Khi đã hiểu rõ uy lực của các ngài, ta sẽ lại lên đường để được chiêm bái.

Word by Word

• तथापि: nevertheless, even so
• तथापि: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय) + अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/विरोधसूचक-निपातसमूहः (concessive particle phrase: "even so/however")

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation marker/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपातः (negation particle)

• चतस्रः: four (feminine)
• चतस्रः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चतस् (प्रातिपदिक; संख्या)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; संख्या-शब्दः (numeral)

• अन्याः: other
• अन्याः: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying "others")

• मया: by me
• मया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम; तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन (instrumental: by me)

• दृग्गोचरीकृताः: made visible / brought into sight
• दृग्गोचरीकृताः: Karma (Object predicate/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृक् (प्रातिपदिक) + गोचर (प्रातिपदिक) + कृ (धातु)
• Form: समासः: दृग्गोचरः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/कर्मधारय-प्रायः: "दृष्टेः गोचरः" = visible) + कृत (कृ-धातोः क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; भूतकर्मणि/कर्मणि प्रयोगः (past passive participle: "made visible")

• तासाम्: of those
• तासाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन (genitive: of those)

• प्रभावम्: power, influence, greatness
• प्रभावम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रभाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• विज्ञाय: having understood
• विज्ञाय: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial to main verb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive): "having known"

• अपि: also, even
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अन्वय-निपातः (particle: also/even)

• आगमिष्यामि: I shall come/return
• आगमिष्यामि: Kriya (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + गम् (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकार (simple future), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Kriya-viseshana (Adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषणम् (adverb: again)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa discourse; the voice reflects a pilgrim’s perspective within the narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (addressed as ‘devī/sundarī’ in adjacent verses)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim-scholar in Kāśī, standing near a ghat with temple spires behind, speaks of unseen sacred cities and vows to journey again after grasping their power.

Characters & Entities

• Sapta-purī (implied)
• Vārāṇasī (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Knowing the greatness of sacred places inspires continued pilgrimage; dharma is strengthened through repeated seeking and direct darśana.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader framework is the sapta-purī tradition, with Kāśī already praised and the remaining sacred cities acknowledged as powerful.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implied tīrtha-yātrā (pilgrimage/visitation); no detailed procedure is stated.