Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

शिवशर्मोवाच । ध्रुवाख्यानमिदं रम्यं महापातकनाशनम् । महाश्चर्यकरं पुण्यं श्रुत्वा तृप्तोस्मि भो गणौ

Transliteration

śivaśarmovāca | dhruvākhyānamidaṃ ramyaṃ mahāpātakanāśanam | mahāścaryakaraṃ puṇyaṃ śrutvā tṛptosmi bho gaṇau

Translation

Śivaśarman sprach: „Diese liebliche Erzählung von Dhruva vernichtet große Sünden. Sie ist heilig und wunderwirkend; nachdem ich sie gehört habe, o Versammlung, bin ich erfüllt und zufrieden.“

Word by Word

• śivaśarmā: Śivaśarmā
• śivaśarmā: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śivaśarman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; नाम (proper noun)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• dhruvākhyānam: the narrative of Dhruva
• dhruvākhyānam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhruva (प्रातिपदिक) + ākhyāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष): 'ध्रुवस्य आख्यानम्'

• idam: this
• idam: Visheshana (Demonstrative/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• ramyam: delightful
• ramyam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ramya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; विशेषण

• mahā-pātaka-nāśanam: destroying great sins
• mahā-pātaka-nāśanam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + pātaka (प्रातिपदिक) + nāśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष: 'महापातकानां नाशनम्' (destroyer of great sins)

• mahā-āścarya-karam: causing great wonder
• mahā-āścarya-karam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + āścarya (प्रातिपदिक) + kara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष: 'महद् आश्चर्यं करोति' (causing great wonder)

• puṇyam: meritorious, holy
• puṇyam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd case), एकवचन; विशेषण (of आख्यानम्)

• śrutvā: having heard
• śrutvā: Kriya-visheshana (Prior action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: śru (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive/gerund): having heard

• tṛptaḥ: satisfied
• tṛptaḥ: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Subject complement/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tṛp (धातु) → tṛpta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle used adjectivally), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन

• asmi: am
• asmi: Kriya (Copula/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present indicative), परस्मैपद, उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन

• bho: O!
• bho: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bho (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्बोधनार्थक-अव्यय (vocative particle)

• gaṇau: O two attendants (Gaṇas)
• gaṇau: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th case), द्विवचन

Speaker

Śivaśarman

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: gaṇa (assembly)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śivaśarman addresses an assembly after hearing Dhruva’s tale; listeners sit in a semicircle, faces serene; a subtle aura of purification surrounds them, suggesting ‘mahāpātaka-nāśana’.

Characters & Entities

• Śivaśarman
• Dhruva
• Mahāpātaka
• Puṇya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Hearing (śravaṇa) Purāṇic devotee-narratives is itself a purifier that destroys even grave sins.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not directly in this verse; it serves as a transition into the next adhyāya within the Kāśī-centered discourse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śravaṇa: listen to the Dhruva narrative for purification and merit.