Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

नरनारायणौ देवौ शङ्खचक्रायुधावुभौ । आस्तां प्रसादसुमुखावस्माकमपराधिनाम्

Transliteration

naranārāyaṇau devau śaṅkhacakrāyudhāvubhau | āstāṃ prasādasumukhāvasmākamaparādhinām

Translation

Mögen die beiden Götter, Nara und Nārāyaṇa, beide mit Muschel und Diskus bewaffnet, vor uns verweilen mit Antlitz voll Erbarmen, obgleich wir Schuldige sind.

Word by Word

• नरनारायणौ: Nara and Nārāyaṇa
• नरनारायणौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर + नारायण (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), द्विवचन = Masculine, Nominative dual; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः (नरश्च नारायणश्च)

• देवौ: the two gods
• देवौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), द्विवचन = Masculine, Nominative dual

• शङ्खचक्रायुधौ: armed with conch and discus
• शङ्खचक्रायुधौ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शङ्ख + चक्र + आयुध (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), द्विवचन = Masculine, Nominative dual; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (शङ्खं च चक्रं च आयुधं यस्य/ययोः = whose weapons are conch and discus)

• उभौ: both
• उभौ: Apposition (Samanadhikarana/समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उभ (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), द्विवचन = Masculine, Nominative dual (pronoun)

• आस्ताम्: may the two be
• आस्ताम्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (आशीर्लिङ्गार्थे/आज्ञार्थे) = Imperative/benedictive; प्रथमा-पुरुष (3rd), द्विवचन = 3rd dual; धातु: अस् (to be)

• प्रसादसुमुखौ: gracious-faced
• प्रसादसुमुखौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रसाद + सुमुख (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), द्विवचन = Masculine, Nominative dual; कर्मधारयः (प्रसादेन सुमुखौ = gracious/with kindly faces)

• अस्माकम्: of us
• अस्माकम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन = Genitive plural (pronoun)

• अपराधिनाम्: of (us) offenders
• अपराधिनाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अपराधिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन = Masculine, Genitive plural; अर्थे: ‘of offenders’

Speaker

Devotees/petitioners (contextual prayer within Revā Khaṇḍa narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Badarikāśrama (implied)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The speakers plead: may Nara-Nārāyaṇa, bearing conch and discus, face them with mercy despite their offense; the divine pair appears calm, protective, and forgiving.

Characters & Entities

• Nara
• Nārāyaṇa
• Śaṅkha
• Cakra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even the guilty can approach the divine through humility, seeking compassionate darśana and forgiveness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā/Narmadā sacred landscape underlies the chapter’s devotional setting, though no single tirtha is named in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No formal rite is stated; the practice implied is supplication and remembrance of the deity’s iconography.