Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 30

Devanagari script

सुरापगाऽसि सरितां सरसां मानसं सरः । हिमवानसि शैलानां धेनूनां कामधुग्भवान्

Transliteration

surāpagā'si saritāṃ sarasāṃ mānasaṃ saraḥ | himavānasi śailānāṃ dhenūnāṃ kāmadhugbhavān

Translation

在诸河之中，你是苏罗阿帕迦——神圣的恒河；在诸湖之中，你是摩那萨湖。在诸山之中，你是喜马梵；在诸牛之中，你是满愿的迦摩德奴。

Word by Word

• सुरापगा: the river Surā (Surāpagā)
• सुरापगा: Pradhana-predicative (विधेय/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुरापगा (प्रातिपदिक; सुरा + अपगा)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: सुरायाः अपगा)

• असि: you are
• असि: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• सरिताम्: of rivers
• सरिताम्: Shashthi-sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरित् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन

• सरसाम्: of lakes
• सरसाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन

• मानसम्: Mānasa (of/pertaining to Manasa)
• मानसम्: Pradhana-predicative (विधेय/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मानस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषण (सरः इति)

• सरः: lake
• सरः: Pradhana-predicative (विधेय/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• हिमवान्: Himavān (the Himalaya)
• हिमवान्: Pradhana-predicative (विधेय/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हिमवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• असि: you are
• असि: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• शैलानाम्: of mountains
• शैलानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शैल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन

• धेनूनाम्: of cows
• धेनूनाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धेनु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन

• कामधुक्: Kāmadhuk (wish-fulfilling cow)
• कामधुक्: Pradhana-predicative (विधेय/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कामधेनु/कामधुक् (प्रातिपदिक; काम + धुक्)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (कर्मधारय/उपपद-तत्पुरुषः: कामं दुह्यतीति)

• भवान्: you (honorific)
• भवान्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; आदरार्थे द्वितीयपुरुषार्थकः (honorific ‘you’)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Kāśīkhaṇḍa default dialogue frame)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgā (Surāpagā) and Kāśī implied; comparative exemplars: Mānasa-sarovar, Himavān

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A hymn-like tableau: Gaṅgā as a radiant river-goddess, Manasarovar as a still lotus-filled lake, Himavān as a snow-crowned king of mountains, and Kāmadhenu as a celestial cow—arranged as emblems of ‘supreme in their class,’ with Kāśī’s sanctity implied as the culmination.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā (Surāpagā)
• Mānasa Sarovar
• Himavān (Himalaya)
• Kāmadhenu

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The holy and the magnificent in nature are seen as manifestations of the Divine, sanctifying pilgrimage and reverence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gaṅgā is directly evoked (central to Kāśī), with wider pan-Indic tīrtha imagery such as Mānasa Sarovar and Himālaya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit prescription; the verse supports tīrtha-smaraṇa (remembering sacred places) and devotional recitation.