Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 91

Devanagari script

किंवात्र बहुनोक्तेन क्रियते यद्व्रतं नरैः । तेन तुष्टिं परां याति दैत्योपरि स्थितो हरिः

Transliteration

kiṃvātra bahunoktena kriyate yadvrataṃ naraiḥ | tena tuṣṭiṃ parāṃ yāti daityopari sthito hariḥ

Translation

فما الحاجة إلى الإكثار من القول؟ أيُّ نذرٍ يتخذه الناس، فبه ينال هاري، القائم فوق الأسورا (الشياطين)، الرضا الأعلى.

Word by Word

• kim: what?
• kim: Viṣaya (Topic/विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Interrogative pronoun, Napuṃsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā/Accusative (contextual), Ekavacana (sg.); used idiomatically in rhetorical question

• vā: indeed / or
• vā: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: Vikalpa-nipāta (particle of alternative/emphasis)

• atra: here, in this matter
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: Deśa-avyaya (adverb of place/स्थान)

• bahunā: with much (talk)
• bahunā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bahu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga (n.) used as substantive, Tṛtīyā vibhakti (3rd/तृतीया), Ekavacana (sg.)

• uktena: by what is said / by speaking
• uktena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: √vac (धातु) + ukta (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: Kta-participle used substantively, Napuṃsakaliṅga (n.), Tṛtīyā vibhakti (3rd/तृतीया), Ekavacana (sg.)

• kriyate: is done
• kriyate: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ lakāra (present), Ātmanepada, Prathama puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana (sg.), Karmaṇi-prayoga (passive)

• yat: which
• yat: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Relative pronoun used adjectivally, Napuṃsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (sg.), qualifying vrataṃ

• vratam: vow, observance
• vratam: Karta (Subject in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (sg.)

• naraiḥ: by men, by people
• naraiḥ: Kartṛ (Agent in passive/कर्तृ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (m.), Tṛtīyā vibhakti (3rd/तृतीया), Bahuvacana (pl.)

• tena: by that (observance)
• tena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sarvanāma (pronoun), Napuṃsakaliṅga (n.), Tṛtīyā vibhakti (3rd/तृतीया), Ekavacana (sg.)

• tuṣṭim: satisfaction, pleasure
• tuṣṭim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tuṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (f.), Dvitīyā vibhakti (2nd/द्वितीया), Ekavacana (sg.)

• parām: supreme, great
• parām: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (f.), Dvitīyā vibhakti (2nd/द्वितीया), Ekavacana (sg.), agreeing with tuṣṭim

• yāti: attains
• yāti: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ lakāra (present), Parasmaipada, Prathama puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana (sg.)

• daitya-upari: above the Daityas (demons)
• daitya-upari: Adhikaraṇa (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: daitya (प्रातिपदिक) + upari (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyayībhāva-samāsa: upari (adverb) governing daitya; functions adverbially

• sthitaḥ: situated, standing
• sthitaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √sthā (धातु) + sthita (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: Kta-participle (क्त), Puṃliṅga (m.), Prathamā vibhakti (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (sg.), agreeing with hariḥ

• hariḥ: Hari (Viṣṇu)
• hariḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (m.), Prathamā vibhakti (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (sg.)

Speaker

Narrative voice (contextual instruction within Tīrthamāhātmya; speaker not explicit in this verse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hari-vrata in śayana/bodhana framework (implied)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Hari enthroned above subdued demons in a symbolic cosmic tableau, while devotees below take vows; the deity’s face shows serene satisfaction as offerings are made.

Characters & Entities

• Hari
• Daitya (demons)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sincere vows, when rightly observed, directly please Hari; devotional discipline is portrayed as spiritually potent.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits inside a tīrtha-māhātmya sequence that points to the place of Hari’s śayana/bodhana, later specified as Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Undertake and maintain vows (vrata) as a means of pleasing Hari.