Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

यदि विश्रुणयेद्राजन्भवानभयदक्षिणाम् । तदा विज्ञापयिष्यामः प्रबद्धकरसंपुटाः

Transliteration

yadi viśruṇayedrājanbhavānabhayadakṣiṇām | tadā vijñāpayiṣyāmaḥ prabaddhakarasaṃpuṭāḥ

Translation

若大王肯垂听，并赐予我们护佑之酬（dakṣiṇā，保安之资），那么我们将合掌恭敬，双手捧合，呈上禀告。

Word by Word

• यदि: if
• यदि: Sambandha (Condition)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्बन्धबोधक-अव्यय (conditional particle)

• विश्रुणयेत्: should listen
• विश्रुणयेत्: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-śru (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; causative sense not intended; ‘should listen/hear’

• राजन्: O king
• राजन्: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• भवान्: you (honored)
• भवान्: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; आदरार्थ-प्रयोग (honorific ‘you’)

• अभयदक्षिणाम्: the ‘fearlessness’ gift/fee
• अभयदक्षिणाम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: abhaya + dakṣiṇā (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी/कर्मधारयार्थ-तत्पुरुषः—‘अभय-रूपा दक्षिणा’ (a fee/gift in the form of safety)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adhikarana (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• विज्ञापयिष्यामः: we will inform/request
• विज्ञापयिष्यामः: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-jñap (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (simple future), परस्मैपद, उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• प्रबद्धकरसंपुटाः: with folded hands
• प्रबद्धकरसंपुटाः: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prabaddha (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक) + kara + saṃpuṭa (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘प्रबद्धौ करौ यस्य/येषां ते’ (hands joined/folded)

Speaker

Pākaśālā-adhikāriṇaḥ (royal kitchen officials/cooks) addressing the King

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: In a palace hall at Kāśī, anxious kitchen officials stand before the king; they request ‘abhaya-dakṣiṇā’ with folded palms, seeking permission and safety to speak freely.

Characters & Entities

• King (Nṛpati/Rājan)
• Royal kitchen staff (Pākaśālā-adhikāriṇaḥ)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Fearlessness (abhaya) is treated as a noble ‘gift’; protection enables truthful speech and responsible service.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits within the Kāśī Khaṇḍa framework (sacred Kāśī/Varanasi), though this specific line is courtly dialogue rather than direct tīrtha praise.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No formal rite; it mentions ‘abhaya-dakṣiṇā’—a protective assurance given as a kind of charitable/ethical offering.