Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

षोडशर्चं महासूक्तं नारायणमयं परम् । तस्यापि पाठमात्रेण ब्रह्महत्या निव र्तते

Transliteration

ṣoḍaśarcaṃ mahāsūktaṃ nārāyaṇamayaṃ param | tasyāpi pāṭhamātreṇa brahmahatyā niva rtate

Translation

ذلك النشيد العظيم الأسمى المؤلَّف من ستة عشر بيتًا، المغمور كلّه بنور ناراياṇa؛ وبمجرد تلاوته يرتدّ حتى إثم «برهمَهَتْيَا» (قتل البرهمن) ويزول.

Word by Word

• षोडश-ऋचम्: consisting of sixteen verses
• षोडश-ऋचम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षोडश (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + ऋच् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः, विशेषणम्

• महा-सूक्तम्: the great hymn
• महा-सूक्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + सूक्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन

• नारायण-मयम्: filled with/consisting of Nārāyaṇa
• नारायण-मयम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नारायण (प्रातिपदिक) + मय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• परम्: supreme
• परम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• तस्य: of that (hymn)
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी विभक्ति, एकवचन; (नपुंसक/पुं) सर्वनाम

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha-bodhaka (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्भावन/समुच्चय-निपात (also/even)

• पाठ-मात्रेण: by mere recitation
• पाठ-मात्रेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाठ (प्रातिपदिक) + मात्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; करणत्वेन

• ब्रह्म-हत्या: Brahmin-slaying (sin)
• ब्रह्म-हत्या: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + हत्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• निवर्तते: ceases; turns back
• निवर्तते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि + √वृत् (धातु)
• Form: लट् लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

Speaker

Narratorial voice within Tīrthamāhātmya (deductively: Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa-like purāṇic narrator addressing listeners)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A brāhmaṇa recites a sixteen-verse hymn before a small shrine; syllables appear as luminous script forming a protective aura that repels a dark ‘brahma-hatyā’ shadow; Nārāyaṇa’s presence is suggested as all-pervading light.

Characters & Entities

• Nārāyaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional recitation centered on Nārāyaṇa is presented as a powerful purifier capable of overcoming even the gravest karmic stains.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse occurs in a Tīrthamāhātmya setting (Nāgarakhaṇḍa), emphasizing tīrtha-linked worship, though this single verse itself highlights the hymn’s power rather than naming a site.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Pāṭha—reciting a sixteen-verse Mahāsūkta dedicated to Nārāyaṇa—as an act of purification/prāyaścitta.