Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 102

Devanagari script

सोऽथ ज्ञानात्समालोक्य भर्तृयज्ञ इति द्विजः । गुप्तक्षेत्रं समापन्नो महीसागरसंगमम्

Transliteration

so'tha jñānātsamālokya bhartṛyajña iti dvijaḥ | guptakṣetraṃ samāpanno mahīsāgarasaṃgamam

Translation

Dann erkannte jener Brahmane namens Bhartṛyajña durch inneres Wissen seinen Weg und gelangte nach Guptakṣetra, zur heiligen Mündung, wo die Mahī in den Ozean einströmt.

Word by Word

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha-bodhaka (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अनन्तर-अव्यय (sequencing particle)

• jñānāt: from (his) knowledge
• jñānāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jñāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative/अपादान), एकवचन; ‘from/through knowledge’

• samālokya: having observed
• samālokya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sam-ā-lok (धातु) + lyap (ल्यप्)
• Form: क्त्वान्त/ल्यबन्त अव्यय (absolutive/gerund), ‘having seen/observed’

• bhartṛyajñaḥ: Bhartṛyajña (name)
• bhartṛyajñaḥ: Pratijñā (Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhartṛ (प्रातिपदिक) + yajña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी: ‘bhartuḥ yajñaḥ’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; proper name/epithet

• iti: thus
• iti: Vākyārtha-dyotaka (Quotation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (निपात)
• Form: उद्धरण-निपात (quotative)

• dvijaḥ: the brāhmaṇa
• dvijaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• guptakṣetram: the hidden sacred place
• guptakṣetram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gupta (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (‘guptaṃ kṣetram’), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• samāpannaḥ: having reached
• samāpannaḥ: Kriyā (Result state)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-pad (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘having reached/arrived’ with ‘dvijaḥ’

• mahīsāgarasaṃgamam: the confluence of earth and ocean
• mahīsāgarasaṃgamam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक) + sāgara (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃgama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध: ‘mahī-sāgarayoḥ saṃgamaḥ’), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; apposition to ‘guptakṣetram’

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) (deduced: Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Guptakṣetra (Mahī-sāgara-saṅgama)

Type: sangam

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim-brāhmaṇa (Bhartṛyajña) arrives at a secret confluence: the Mahī river broadens into the sea; dawn light, birds, gentle waves; the pilgrim stands at the meeting waters, poised for snāna, guided by inner knowledge.

Characters & Entities

• Bhartṛyajña
• Guptakṣetra
• Mahī
• Sāgara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Right discernment (jñāna) guides one toward sacred geography, where purification and transformation become possible.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Guptakṣetra at the Mahī–Ocean confluence (Mahīsāgara-saṅgama).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse implies tīrtha-yātrā (going to the holy place); specific worship/rites are detailed in following verses.