Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

ततश्च नव मे दुर्गाः समानीताः शृणुध्व ताः

Transliteration

tataśca nava me durgāḥ samānītāḥ śṛṇudhva tāḥ

Translation

ثم بعد ذلك جِيءَ بتسع دورغا لي؛ فاسمعوهنّ كما أصفهنّ لكم.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then, thereafter
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अनुक्रम/कालवाचक (then/thereafter)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• nava: nine
• nava: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nava (संख्यावाचक-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक-विशेषण

• me: my
• me: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; ‘मम’

• durgāḥ: Durgās (forms of Durgā)
• durgāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: durgā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• samānītāḥ: have been brought together
• samānītāḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam + ā + √nī (नी) (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; कर्मणि ‘आनीताः/समानीताः’

• śṛṇudhva: hear (you all)
• śṛṇudhva: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (श्रु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• tāḥ: them (f.)
• tāḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) to the sages (deduced)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sages/Devas (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A narrator-figure introduces nine Durgās being ‘brought’ into presence—like nine luminous stations appearing in sequence, inviting the audience to listen.

Characters & Entities

• Navadurgā (nine Durgās)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The tradition preserves multiple localized manifestations of Durgā, inviting attentive listening and remembrance as a devotional act.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse is a transition; the specific sites of the nine Durgās are expected in the subsequent verses.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śravaṇa (devout listening) is implied as a meritorious practice in Purāṇic transmission.