Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 44

Devanagari script

न विद्मः कुत्र वर्तामो भवान्नाथोपलक्ष्यते । सर्वं जगदिऐकस्थं पिण्डितं लक्षयामहे

Transliteration

na vidmaḥ kutra vartāmo bhavānnāthopalakṣyate | sarvaṃ jagadiaikasthaṃ piṇḍitaṃ lakṣayāmahe

Translation

Wir wissen nicht, wo wir stehen; nur Du, o Beschützer, wirst wahrgenommen. Wir schauen das ganze Weltall an einem einzigen Ort versammelt, als wäre es zu einer einzigen Masse verdichtet.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• vidmaḥ: we know
• vidmaḥ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: विद् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• kutra: where
• kutra: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kutra (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक-अव्यय (interrogative adverb of place)

• vartāmaḥ: we are/abide
• vartāmaḥ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वृत् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद; (वर्तते इति)

• bhavān: you (honored)
• bhavān: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; आदरार्थ-प्रयोग (honorific ‘you’)

• nātha: O Lord
• nātha: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th case), एकवचन

• upalakṣyate: is perceived/recognized
• upalakṣyate: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उप-लक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• sarvam: everything
• sarvam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन

• jagat: of the world
• jagat: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जगत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), एकवचन (समासाङ्ग)

• aikastham: situated in one place
• aikastham: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक + स्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; एकस्मिन् स्थम् इति (locative-tatpurusha)

• piṇḍitam: compacted/condensed
• piṇḍitam: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पिण्डित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; पिण्ड्/पिण्डय् धातोः)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि-प्रत्यय (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• lakṣayāmahe: we perceive/observe
• lakṣayāmahe: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: लक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद

Speaker

Apsarās, collectively

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha sphere (general Revākhaṇḍa setting)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Hari/Janārdana

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Apsarās (or devotees) stand on a luminous riverbank; before them the Lord’s presence makes the whole universe appear ‘compacted’—stars, mountains, oceans, beings layered within a single radiant mass; the figures look upward in awe, hands folded.

Characters & Entities

• Nātha (the Lord)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

All multiplicity can be seen as resting in the One; spiritual vision culminates in perceiving the universe within the Lord.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named site in this verse; it is part of the Revā-khaṇḍa narrative frame.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.