Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

शृण्वतां पठतां चैव महापातकनाशनम् । महापुण्यप्रदं पुंसा नरकक्लेशनाशनम्

Transliteration

śṛṇvatāṃ paṭhatāṃ caiva mahāpātakanāśanam | mahāpuṇyapradaṃ puṃsā narakakleśanāśanam

Translation

Für jene, die es hören, und für jene, die es rezitieren, vernichtet dies die großen Sünden; es schenkt den Menschen übergroßes Verdienst (puṇya) und nimmt die Qualen der Hölle hinweg.

Word by Word

• शृण्वताम्: of (those) listening
• शृण्वताम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रु (धातु) → शृण्वत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present active participle); पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन — 'of those who are listening'

• पठताम्: of (those) reciting
• पठताम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पठ् (धातु) → पठत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन — 'of those who recite/read'

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक अव्यय (conjunction)

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• महापातकनाशनम्: destroyer of great sins
• महापातकनाशनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महापातक + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (महापातकस्य नाशनम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — विशेषणम्

• महापुण्यप्रदम्: bestowing great merit
• महापुण्यप्रदम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महापुण्य + प्रद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (महापुण्यस्य प्रदम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — विशेषणम्

• पुंसा: by a man / for a person
• पुंसा: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुंस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — 'by/for a man' (instrumental)

• नरकक्लेशनाशनम्: destroyer of the sufferings of hell
• नरकक्लेशनाशनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नरकक्लेश + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (नरकक्लेशस्य नाशनम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — विशेषणम्

Speaker

Sūta (deduced from immediate narrative context in Setukhaṇḍa dialogues)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setu-kṣetra (general phalaśruti for the section)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A recitation assembly: Sūta addressing seated ṛṣis in a forest hermitage; palm-leaf manuscript, sacrificial fires, and a distant suggestion of the Setu seascape as the sacred subject of the discourse.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śravaṇa (hearing) and pāṭha (recitation) of sacred Purāṇic narratives are themselves purifying acts that destroy grave sins and generate great puṇya.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse serves as a general phalaśruti within the Setukhaṇḍa context, preparing the reader for the forthcoming glorification of Gāyatrī–Sarasvatī-related tīrthas.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Hearing and reciting (śravaṇa and pāṭha) the sacred account is prescribed as a merit-yielding practice.