Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

नर्मदायाः समीपे तु तावुभौ योजनद्वये । न पश्यन्ति यमं तत्र ये मृता वरवर्णिनि

Transliteration

narmadāyāḥ samīpe tu tāvubhau yojanadvaye | na paśyanti yamaṃ tatra ye mṛtā varavarṇini

Translation

Doch innerhalb von zwei Yojanas zu beiden Seiten der Narmadā erblicken jene, die dort sterben, o Schönhäutige, Yama nicht.

Word by Word

• नर्मदायाः: of (the river) Narmadā
• नर्मदायाः: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन (Singular)

• समीपे: near, in the vicinity
• समीपे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: समीप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• तु: but/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle), विरोध/विशेषार्थक (but/indeed)

• तौ: those two
• तौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), द्विवचन (Dual)

• उभौ: both
• उभौ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), द्विवचन (Dual); विशेषण (adjectival) तौ इति

• योजनद्वये: within two yojanas
• योजनद्वये: Adhikarana (Extent/location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योजन + द्वि (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular); द्विगु-समास (numeral compound)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात (negation particle)

• पश्यन्ति: they see
• पश्यन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural)

• यमम्: Yama (lord of death)
• यमम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• ये: who
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• मृताः: dead, having died
• मृताः: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृत (कृदन्त; √मृ धातु)
• Form: भूतकृत् (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); विशेषण (qualifies ये)

• वरवर्णिनि: O fair-complexioned one
• वरवर्णिनि: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वरवर्णिनी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मधारय-समास (वर + वर्णिनी)

Speaker

Śiva (deduced: addressing Devī as varavarṇinī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Reva/Narmadā-kṣetra (two-yojana river ambit)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Varavarṇinī / Viśālākṣī / Sundarī (a addressed female interlocutor; exact identity not specified in excerpt)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A wide Narmadā river with luminous banks marked as a protective sacred boundary; departing souls rise as light, while Yama and his attendants remain at a distance, unable to enter the two-yojana sanctum.

Characters & Entities

• Narmadā
• Yama

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A supremely holy kṣetra transforms even death into auspicious passage, overriding fear of Yama through tīrtha-mahima.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Narmadā riverbank region—within two yojanas on both sides of the river.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is prescribed; the verse states the salvific status of dying within the Narmadā’s sacred vicinity.