Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 74

Devanagari script

सैन्यसंघं समुत्तीर्य्य बभ्राम क्षेत्रमध्यतः । तत्र तीर्थेषु सर्वेषु देवतायतनेषु च

Transliteration

sainyasaṃghaṃ samuttīryya babhrāma kṣetramadhyataḥ | tatra tīrtheṣu sarveṣu devatāyataneṣu ca

Translation

Nachdem er sein Heer hinübergeführt hatte, wanderte er durch das Herz des heiligen Gebietes, besuchte alle dortigen Tīrthas und ebenso die Heiligtümer der Gottheiten.

Word by Word

• सैन्यसंघम्: the troop/host of the army
• सैन्यसंघम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सैन्य + संघ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सैन्यस्य संघः)

• समुत्तीर्य: having crossed/ascended
• समुत्तीर्य: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/अनुबन्ध)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-उत्-तॄ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्यय; ‘having crossed/come up’

• बभ्राम: wandered/roamed
• बभ्राम: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• क्षेत्रमध्यतः: from/through the middle of the field
• क्षेत्रमध्यतः: Adhikarana (Location/देश)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्षेत्र + मध्य + तः (अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त) — ‘मध्यतः’ = from the middle; समासः ‘क्षेत्रस्य मध्यतः’ (ablatival sense)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक adverb) — ‘there’

• तीर्थेषु: at the sacred fords/holy places
• तीर्थेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), बहुवचन

• सर्वेषु: in all
• सर्वेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), बहुवचन; ‘तीर्थेषु’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• देवतायतनेषु: in the temples/shrines of deities
• देवतायतनेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता + आयतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (देवतायाः आयतनम्)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय-bodhaka conjunction)

Speaker

Narratorial voice (Purāṇic narrator; speaker not explicit in this snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Harikṣetra tīrtha-samūha (all tīrthas within the kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Rāma’s army crosses over and then spreads through the sacred region: banners, elephants/horses, sages guiding; the route passes ponds/ghāṭas and small temples where brief darśanas occur.

Characters & Entities

• Rāma
• Tīrthas (plural)
• Devatāyatanas (temples)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is not random wandering; it is a deliberate traversal of tīrthas and temples, honoring the sacred landscape.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader kṣetra of Dharmāraṇya/Harikṣetra is highlighted as containing many tīrthas and deity-shrines.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Systematic tīrtha-darśana and devatā-darśana—visiting all sacred fords and temples within the kṣetra.