Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 47

Devanagari script

अन्यानि काललक्ष्माणि तिष्ठंतु कलशोद्भव । जरैव प्रथमं लक्ष्म चित्रं तत्रापि भीर्नहि

Transliteration

anyāni kālalakṣmāṇi tiṣṭhaṃtu kalaśodbhava | jaraiva prathamaṃ lakṣma citraṃ tatrāpi bhīrnahi

Translation

让其他时光的征兆都暂且停留吧，噢壶生者；唯有衰老才是最先、最主要的标记。奇异的是，即便如此，人们仍不生畏惧。

Word by Word

• anyāni: other
• anyāni: Karta-viśeṣaṇa (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘lakṣmāṇi’)

• kālalakṣmāṇi: signs of time
• kālalakṣmāṇi: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक) + lakṣma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (kālasya lakṣmāṇi = ‘marks/signs of time’)

• tiṣṭhantu: let them remain
• tiṣṭhantu: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (धातु: स्था)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• kalaśodbhava: O pot-born one
• kalaśodbhava: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kalaśa (प्रातिपदिक) + udbhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (kalaśāt udbhavaḥ = ‘born from the pot’; epithet)

• jarā: old age
• jarā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jarā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• eva: indeed/alone
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण-निपात (only/indeed)

• prathamam: first
• prathamam: Kriya-viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prathama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणवत् (adverbially: ‘first’)

• lakṣma: mark/sign
• lakṣma: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; (context: predicate/mark)

• citram: strange/wondrous
• citram: Karma-viśeṣaṇa (Predicative qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: citra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (predicative adjective: ‘wonderful/strange’)

• tatra: there/in that
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Locative setting)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (locative adverb: ‘there/in that matter’)

• api: even/also
• api: Sambandha (Emphasis/Addition)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अपि-निपात (also/even)

• bhīḥ: fear
• bhīḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Emphasis/Reason)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधान/हेतु-निपात

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; direct address to Agastya, kalaśodbhava)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Agastya (kalśodbhava)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sage addressing ‘Kalashodbhava’ (Agastya): behind them, a crowd ignores an elderly figure leaning on a staff; time’s emblems (withered leaves, setting sun) remain, but jarā stands foremost—yet the crowd shows no fear.

Characters & Entities

• Agastya (Kalaśodbhava)
• Kāśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Old age is an obvious warning of time’s power, yet people remain heedless; therefore one should awaken to dharma and liberation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kāśī is the broader Adhyāya’s focal sacred geography, though not named in this single verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is prescribed; the verse is admonitory, preparing the listener for Kāśī-centered practice.