Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

शुक्लतीर्थं ना जानाति नर्मदातटसंस्थितम् । बहुनात्र किमुक्तेन धर्मपुत्र पुनः पुनः

Transliteration

śuklatīrthaṃ nā jānāti narmadātaṭasaṃsthitam | bahunātra kimuktena dharmaputra punaḥ punaḥ

Translation

সি নর্মদা নদীৰ তীৰত অৱস্থিত শুক্লতীৰ্থ নাজানে। ইয়াত অধিক কিবা ক’লে কি লাভ, হে ধৰ্মপুত্ৰ, পুনঃ পুনঃ?

Word by Word

• शुक्लतीर्थम्: Śukla-tīrtha
• शुक्लतीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुक्ल + तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निषेध/particle) = negation

• जानाति: knows
• जानाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

• नर्मदातटसंस्थितम्: situated on the bank of the Narmadā
• नर्मदातटसंस्थितम्: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नर्मदा + तट + संस्थित (√स्था धातु; कृदन्त; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (शुक्लतीर्थम्); ‘संस्थित’ = भूतकृदन्त (क्त) ‘situated’; समासः षष्ठी/सप्तमी-तत्पुरुषार्थकः (नर्मदायाḥ तटे संस्थितम्)

• बहुना: with much (speech)
• बहुना: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बहु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन = instrumental singular; ‘by much (talk)’

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Adhikarana (Adverbial location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक/locative adverb) = ‘here’

• किम्: what?
• किम्: Karma (Object in idiom/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; प्रश्नार्थक सर्वनाम

• उक्तेन: by saying (it)
• उक्तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उक्त (√वच् धातु; कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त) used substantively = ‘by what is said’

• धर्मपुत्र: O Dharmaputra (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• धर्मपुत्र: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म + पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (धर्मस्य पुत्रः)

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (काल/पुनरावृत्ति-बोधक) = ‘again’

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (पुनरावृत्ति)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; addressing Yudhiṣṭhira as Dharmaputra)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śuklatīrtha

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Dharmaputra (Yudhiṣṭhira)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A teacher points along the Narmadā bank, naming Śuklatīrtha; the king listens as the river flows steadily; the composition emphasizes ‘taṭa-saṃsthita’—the shoreline itself as sacred geography.

Characters & Entities

• Śuklatīrtha
• Narmadā
• Dharmaputra (Yudhiṣṭhira)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ignorance of sacred places is a spiritual loss; the text urges recognition of Śuklatīrtha’s presence on the Narmadā.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Śuklatīrtha on the Narmadā riverbank.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a rhetorical emphasis on the importance of knowing the tīrtha.