Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 75

Devanagari script

स्कंद उवाच । यदा यदा स गिरिजा मृदुनामाक्षरामृतम् । आविष्करोति पथिकोऽद्रींद्रो हृष्येत्तदातदा

Transliteration

skaṃda uvāca | yadā yadā sa girijā mṛdunāmākṣarāmṛtam | āviṣkaroti pathiko'drīṃdro hṛṣyettadātadā

Translation

斯甘达说：每当那位朝圣者显露柔和音节的甘露——吉丽迦（Girijā）的甜美圣名——喜马梵（Himavān），群山之主，便一次又一次欢喜。

Word by Word

• skaṃdaḥ: Skanda
• skaṃdaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: skaṃda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपदी; प्रथमपुरुष एकवचन

• yadā: when
• yadā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (relative adverb of time)

• yadā: whenever
• yadā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (repetition for emphasis)

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचन

• girijā: Girijā (Pārvatī)
• girijā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: girijā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचन

• mṛdu-nāma: soft-named, gentle (in name)
• mṛdu-nāma: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mṛdu (प्रातिपदिक) + nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारयः (मृदु नाम यस्य); नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचन (अक्षरामृतम् इति विशेष्यस्य विशेषणम्)

• akṣara-amṛtam: nectar-like syllable/word
• akṣara-amṛtam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: akṣara (प्रातिपदिक) + amṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारयः (अक्षररूपम् अमृतम्); नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचन

• āviṣkaroti: manifests, reveals
• āviṣkaroti: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: āviṣ-kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपदी; प्रथमपुरुष एकवचन; नामधातु-प्रयोगः (आविष् + कृ)

• pathikaḥ: traveller
• pathikaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pathika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचन

• adrīndraḥ: lord of mountains (Himālaya)
• adrīndraḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adri (प्रातिपदिक) + indra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषः (अद्रीणाम् इन्द्रः); पुल्लिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचन

• hṛṣyet: would rejoice
• hṛṣyet: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: hṛṣ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), आत्मनेपदी; प्रथमपुरुष एकवचन

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (correlative adverb of time)

• tadā: at that very time
• tadā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (repetition for emphasis)

Speaker

Skanda

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Skanda speaks as a narrator; a pilgrim on the road softly chants Girijā’s name; in a mythic overlay, Himavān (the mountain personified) smiles with joy, as if hearing his daughter praised.

Characters & Entities

• Skanda
• Girijā (Pārvatī)
• Himavān (Adrīndra)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The divine Name is ‘nectar’: even a simple utterance of the Goddess’s name carries joy and auspicious power.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The larger Kāśī setting continues; this verse emphasizes nāma-bhakti more than a named tirtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicit nāma-japa/utterance of Girijā’s name.