Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

हितार्थं सर्वभूतानामृषिभिः स्थापितं पुरा । तपसा तु समुद्धृत्य नर्मदायां महाम्भसि

Transliteration

hitārthaṃ sarvabhūtānāmṛṣibhiḥ sthāpitaṃ purā | tapasā tu samuddhṛtya narmadāyāṃ mahāmbhasi

Translation

Zum Wohle aller Wesen errichteten es die ṛṣis einst; und durch Askese (tapas) hoben sie es empor und setzten es in die großen Wasser der Narmadā.

Word by Word

• hita-artham: for the sake of welfare
• hita-artham: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hita (√dhā धातु + kta क्त; ‘placed/beneficial’) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (हितस्य अर्थः); पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; प्रयोजनवाचक

• sarva-bhūtānām: of all beings
• sarva-bhūtānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + bhūta (√bhū धातु + kta क्त)
• Form: कर्मधारय (sarvāṇi bhūtāni); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• ṛṣibhiḥ: by sages
• ṛṣibhiḥ: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन

• sthāpitam: established
• sthāpitam: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (स्था धातु) + ṇic (णिच्) → sthāpaya + kta (क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; कर्मणि ‘was established’

• purā: formerly, long ago
• purā: Desha-Kala (Adverbial/देश-काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (adverb of time)

• tapasā: by austerity
• tapasā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• tu: indeed
• tu: Avyaya (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle)

• samuddhṛtya: having raised up
• samuddhṛtya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√uddhṛ (उद्धृ धातु) + lyap (ल्यप्)
• Form: अव्ययभाव कृदन्त (gerund/ल्यप्), ‘having lifted up/raised’

• narmadāyām: in the Narmadā
• narmadāyām: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: narmadā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• mahā-ambhasi: in the great waters
• mahā-ambhasi: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + ambhas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय (mahat ambhaḥ); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced: Purāṇic narration in Revākhaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kahloḍī Tīrtha

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Ancient sages perform severe austerities on the Narmadā bank; from their tapas a tīrtha-marker/stone platform emerges or is ‘raised’ into the river’s great waters, signifying consecration.

Characters & Entities

• Ṛṣis
• Narmadā (Revā)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holy places and rites are founded for universal welfare, and tapas (austerity) is portrayed as a power that manifests sacred presence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A tīrtha situated in the waters of the Narmadā (Revā), within the Revākhaṇḍa context leading into Kapilātīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is prescribed here; it introduces the tīrtha’s sacred origin through the sages’ tapas.