Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 69

Devanagari script

नृत्यमानाः पुरस्तस्य देवदेवस्य शूलिनः । सस्पर्धा गणमुख्यैस्तैर्नर्तमानैः समंततः

Transliteration

nṛtyamānāḥ purastasya devadevasya śūlinaḥ | saspardhā gaṇamukhyaistairnartamānaiḥ samaṃtataḥ

Translation

وكانوا يرقصون أمام إله الآلهة، حامل الشُّولة (شيفا)، كما رقص رؤساء الغَنَة من كل جانب، يتبارون فيما بينهم في رقصٍ متدفّق.

Word by Word

• नृत्यमानाः: dancing
• नृत्यमानाः: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नृत् (धातु) → नृत्यमान (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन; वर्तमानकृदन्त/शतृ (present active participle) — ‘dancing’

• पुरस्तस्य: in front of
• पुरस्तस्य: Adhikarana (Spatial/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरस् (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय-प्रयोगः; षष्ठी-एकवचन-रूपेण (in front of him)

• देवदेवस्य: of the god of gods
• देवदेवस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव + देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (god of gods)

• शूलिनः: of the trident-bearer
• शूलिनः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शूलिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी, एकवचन; विशेषण-नाम (epithet of Śiva)

• सस्पर्धाः: rivalrous
• सस्पर्धाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सस्पर्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण — ‘competitive/rivalrous’

• गणमुख्यैः: with the chiefs of the gaṇas
• गणमुख्यैः: Sahakarana (Association/सहकारण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गण + मुख्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः (chiefs of the gaṇas)

• तैः: with those
• तैः: Sahakarana (Association/सहकारण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया, बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• नर्तमानैः: with (those) dancing
• नर्तमानैः: Sahakarana (Association/सहकारण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नृत् (धातु) → नर्तमान (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया, बहुवचन; वर्तमानकृदन्त/शतृ — ‘dancing’

• समन्ततः: on all sides
• समन्ततः: Adhikarana (Spatial/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: समन्ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (on all sides)

Speaker

Narrator (contextually Sūta in Purāṇic frame; not explicit in this verse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Before the trident-bearing Lord, gaṇas whirl in a ring-dance, leaping and stamping, each trying to surpass the other, while the deity stands radiant and still at the center.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Śūlin, Devadeva)
• Gaṇas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional joy is portrayed as sacred—service to Śiva can be expressed through celebratory, wholehearted worship.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits within a Tīrthamāhātmya chapter of Nāgarakhaṇḍa, but this single śloka does not name the tīrtha explicitly.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; it describes the divine retinue (Gaṇas) worshipfully dancing before Śiva.