Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

सापश्यद्धेमपद्माढ्यां वापीं तु स्वर्णभूमिकाम् । क्षीरं वहंति सरितः स्रवंति मधु भूरुहः

Transliteration

sāpaśyaddhemapadmāḍhyāṃ vāpīṃ tu svarṇabhūmikām | kṣīraṃ vahaṃti saritaḥ sravaṃti madhu bhūruhaḥ

Translation

ورأت بركةً غنيةً بزنابقَ لوتسٍ من ذهب، وضفافُها كأنها من ذهب. وهناك كانت الأنهار تجري لبنًا، وكانت الأشجارُ نفسها تقطر عسلًا.

Word by Word

• सा: she
• सा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• अपश्यत्: saw
• अपश्यत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु) उपसर्गः अ (आङ्-लोप/अ-प्रत्यय)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• हेमपद्माढ्याम्: rich in golden lotuses
• हेमपद्माढ्याम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हेम (प्रातिपदिक) + पद्म (प्रातिपदिक) + आढ्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (हेमपद्मैः आढ्या), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; ‘वापीम्’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• वापीम्: a pond/tank
• वापीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वापी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Sambandha/Emphasis (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle)

• स्वर्णभूमिकाम्: having a golden ground/bank
• स्वर्णभूमिकाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्वर्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + भूमिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (स्वर्णमयी भूमिः यस्याः), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; ‘वापीम्’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• क्षीरम्: milk
• क्षीरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• वहन्ति: carry/flow with
• वहन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वह् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन

• सरितः: rivers/streams
• सरितः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरित् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• स्रवन्ति: drip/ooze/flow
• स्रवन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्रु (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन

• मधु: honey
• मधु: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मधु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• भूरुहः: trees (earth-growing)
• भूरुहः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूरुह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa conveying the Māhātmya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Vṛṃdā beholds a pond filled with golden lotuses and golden banks; nearby, rivers flow with milk and trees drip honey, creating a luminous, otherworldly landscape.

Characters & Entities

• vāpī (sacred pond)
• saritaḥ (rivers)
• bhūruhaḥ (trees)
• hema-padma (golden lotus)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holiness transforms the environment—tīrthas are portrayed as places where divine merit manifests as purity, nourishment, and auspicious abundance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A wondrous vāpī (sacred tank) within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s tīrtha-region is being described, signaling a highly meritorious pilgrimage micro-site.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Not stated directly; sacred ponds in Māhātmya contexts typically imply snāna (ritual bathing) and tīrtha-darśana as sources of puṇya.