Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 117

Devanagari script

तापी पयोष्णी निर्विध्या कावेरी च महीनदी । कृष्णा वेणी भीमरथी सह्यपादोद्भवाः स्मृताः

Transliteration

tāpī payoṣṇī nirvidhyā kāverī ca mahīnadī | kṛṣṇā veṇī bhīmarathī sahyapādodbhavāḥ smṛtāḥ

Translation

إن «تابي» و«بايوشني» و«نِرفِنْدْهْيَا» و«كافيري» ونهر «مَهي»، وكذلك «كِرِشْنَا» و«وِيني» و«بِيمَرَثِي»، تُذْكَرُ أنها تنبع من سفوح جبال «سَهْيَا».

Word by Word

• तापी: Tāpī (river)
• तापी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तापी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• पयोष्णी: Payoṣṇī (river)
• पयोष्णी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पयोष्णी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• निर्विध्या: Nirvidhyā (river)
• निर्विध्या: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निर्विध्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• कावेरी: Kāverī (river)
• कावेरी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कावेरी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• महीनदी: Mahīnadī (river Mahī)
• महीनदी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मही + नदी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• कृष्णा: Kṛṣṇā (river)
• कृष्णा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्णा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• वेणी: Veṇī (river)
• वेणी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• भीमरथी: Bhīmarathī (river)
• भीमरथी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीमरथी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• सह्यपादोद्भवाः: arising from the foot of the Sahya (mountains)
• सह्यपादोद्भवाः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सह्यपाद + उद्भव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; विशेषण (एताः नद्यः)

• स्मृताः: are said to be
• स्मृताः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa / Predicative qualifier
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्मृ (धातु) + त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; ‘are said/remembered’

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative frame

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sahya-pāda (Western Ghats foothill tīrthas)

Type: peak

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The Sahya (Western Ghats) depicted as a long emerald ridge; multiple river goddesses emerge in procession—Kāverī with lotus and śaṅkha-like vessel, Kṛṣṇā darker-hued stream, Tāpī flowing west toward a stylized sea; pilgrims and farmers receive the waters as blessings.

Characters & Entities

• Tāpī
• Payoṣṇī
• Nirvindhyā
• Kāverī
• Mahī (river)
• Kṛṣṇā
• Veṇī
• Bhīmarathī
• Sahya (mountains)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Remembering the sacred origins of rivers cultivates reverence for tīrthas and the dharmic sanctity of the land.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Sahya mountain region (Sahyādri) is emphasized as a sacred source-area for multiple rivers.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse supports the tīrtha framework by identifying river origins.