Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

नीलपर्वतजं पुण्यं षष्ठांशेन लभेत सः । त्रिनरास्तत्र तिष्ठन्ति सादित्यमरुतैः सह

Transliteration

nīlaparvatajaṃ puṇyaṃ ṣaṣṭhāṃśena labheta saḥ | trinarāstatra tiṣṭhanti sādityamarutaiḥ saha

Translation

Er erlangt als sechsten Teil das Verdienst, das von Nīlaparvata ausgeht. Dort verweilen drei göttliche Wesen, zusammen mit den Ādityas und den Maruts.

Word by Word

• nīla-parvata-jam: arising from the Nīla mountain
• nīla-parvata-jam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nīla (प्रातिपदिक) + parvata (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम् (Neuter), द्वितीया-विभक्तिः (Accusative/2nd), एकवचनम् (Singular); विशेषणम् (qualifier) पुण्यम्; समासः: nīla-parvata-ja = 'born/produced from Nīlaparvata'

• puṇyam: merit / holy benefit
• puṇyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम् (Neuter), द्वितीया-विभक्तिः (Accusative/2nd), एकवचनम् (Singular)

• ṣaṣṭhāṃśena: by a sixth part / in one-sixth measure
• ṣaṣṭhāṃśena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṣaṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक) + aṃśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गम् (Masculine), तृतीया-विभक्तिः (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचनम् (Singular); करणम् (means/measure)

• labheta: may obtain / should obtain
• labheta: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: labh (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), आत्मनेपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचनम् (Singular)

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गम् (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative/1st), एकवचनम् (Singular); सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• tri-narāḥ: three men
• tri-narāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri (प्रातिपदिक) + nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गम् (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative/1st), बहुवचनम् (Plural); द्विगु-समासः = 'three men'

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

• tiṣṭhanti: stand / remain
• tiṣṭhanti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sthā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), बहुवचनम् (Plural)

• sa-āditya-marutaiḥ: with the Ādityas and the Maruts
• sa-āditya-marutaiḥ: Sahakari (Accompaniment/सहकारी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sa (अव्यय/उपसर्गार्थ 'with') + āditya (प्रातिपदिक) + marut (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गम् (Masculine), तृतीया-विभक्तिः (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचनम् (Plural); द्वन्द्व-समासः: āditya + marut; 'sa-' = सहार्थक-पूर्वपद (with)

• saha: together with
• saha: Sahakari (Accompaniment/सहकारी)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: saha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; सहार्थक-निपातः/उपपद (postposition 'with', governs instrumental)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Nīlaparvata (as puṇya-source) / associated Śūlabheda-kshetra

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Avanīpati / king

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A blue-hued sacred mountain rises behind a cave-liṅga shrine; three radiant divine figures stand as guardians; above them, solar Ādityas and wind Maruts appear as luminous presences in the sky.

Characters & Entities

• Nīlaparvata
• Tri-narāḥ (three divine persons)
• Ādityas
• Maruts

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred places participate in a hierarchy of merit, and divine presences (devas) are portrayed as actively inhabiting revered landscapes.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Nīlaparvata is referenced as a benchmark of merit, while the immediate locale is praised as sharing a portion of that mountain’s puṇya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed; the verse asserts the merit obtained and the divine beings said to reside there.