Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

सूत उवाच । दृष्ट्वा प्रतिष्ठितं लिंगं याज्ञवल्क्येन धीमता । स्वमातुः शुद्धिहेतोः स तन्नाम्ना लिंगमुत्तमम्

Transliteration

sūta uvāca | dṛṣṭvā pratiṣṭhitaṃ liṃgaṃ yājñavalkyena dhīmatā | svamātuḥ śuddhihetoḥ sa tannāmnā liṃgamuttamam

Translation

সূত বললেন—জ্ঞানী যাজ্ঞবল্ক্য মাতার শুদ্ধির জন্য যে লিঙ্গ প্রতিষ্ঠা করেছিলেন, তা দেখে তিনি সেই নামেই সেই উত্তম লিঙ্গকে প্রসিদ্ধ করলেন।

Word by Word

• sūtaḥ: Sūta
• sūtaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; वक्ता/कर्ता

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund); पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (having seen)

• pratiṣṭhitam: installed/established
• pratiṣṭhitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prati-ṣṭhā (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; क्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण

• liṅgam: liṅga (Śiva emblem)
• liṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्म

• yājñavalkyena: by Yājñavalkya
• yājñavalkyena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yājñavalkya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; करण/कर्तृ-निर्देश (agent/instrument)

• dhīmatā: wise
• dhīmatā: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dhīmat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; विशेषण (yājñavalkyasya)

• sva-mātuḥ: of (his) own mother
• sva-mātuḥ: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva + mātṛ (प्रातिपदिक; स्व + मातृ)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध (genitive)

• śuddhi-hetoḥ: for purification (as the purpose)
• śuddhi-hetoḥ: Hetu (Purpose/Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śuddhi-hetu (प्रातिपदिक; शुद्धि + हेतु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; प्रयोजन-सम्बन्ध (for the sake of)

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्ता

• tat-nāmnā: by that name
• tat-nāmnā: Karana (Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad + nāman (प्रातिपदिक; तत् + नामन्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; नाम-करण (by that name)

• liṅgam: the liṅga
• liṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्म

• uttamam: excellent
• uttamam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Yājñavalkyeśvara

Type: temple

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis of Naimiṣāraṇya (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yājñavalkya, austere and radiant, stands before a newly established Śiva-liṅga; the mood is solemn and compassionate, with an implied maternal figure or symbolic ‘mother’s purification’ motif (water-vessel, white cloth, lamps).

Characters & Entities

• Sūta
• Yājñavalkya
• Yājñavalkyeśvara
• Śiva
• Mother of Yājñavalkya (unnamed)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Acts of devotion performed with filial responsibility (seeking a parent’s purification) become sanctifying for both family and place.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra setting where Yājñavalkya’s consecrated liṅga is revered.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Liṅga-pratiṣṭhā (consecratory establishment) undertaken with a purificatory intention.