Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

नारद उवाच । अथातः संप्रवक्ष्यामि सोमनाथमहिं स्फुटम् । शृण्वन्यां कीर्त यिष्यामि पापमोक्षमवाप्नुयात्

Transliteration

nārada uvāca | athātaḥ saṃpravakṣyāmi somanāthamahiṃ sphuṭam | śṛṇvanyāṃ kīrta yiṣyāmi pāpamokṣamavāpnuyāt

Translation

Nārada sprach: „Nun werde ich die Größe Somanāthas klar darlegen. Ich werde sie verkünden; wer sie hört, erlangt Befreiung von Sünde.“

Word by Word

• nāradaḥ: Nārada
• nāradaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• atha: then/now
• atha: Sambandha/Avyaya (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रम/आरम्भार्थक (then/now)

• ataḥ: thereafter/therefore
• ataḥ: Sambandha/Avyaya (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; हेत्वर्थ/अनन्तरार्थ (therefore/thereafter)

• saṃpravakṣyāmi: I shall explain
• saṃpravakṣyāmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: saṃ-pra-√vac (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• somanātha-mahim: the glory of Somanātha
• somanātha-mahim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: somanātha (प्रातिपदिक) + mahimā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; ‘सोमनाथमहिम्’ = सोमनाथस्य महिमानम् (glory of Somanātha)

• sphuṭam: clearly
• sphuṭam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sphuṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणवत् (clearly)

• śṛṇvan: (one) listening
• śṛṇvan: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (धातु) + śatṛ (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले कृदन्त (present active participle, शतृ); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्तरि

• yām: which (that)
• yām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधकः सापेक्ष-सर्वनाम (referring to the कथा/कीर्ति)

• kīrtayiṣyāmi: I shall proclaim
• kīrtayiṣyāmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kīrt (धातु, नामधातु/णिच्)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; णिच् (causative) प्रयोगः = I shall proclaim

• pāpa-mokṣam: release from sin
• pāpa-mokṣam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + mokṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; ‘पापमोक्षम्’ = पापात् मोक्षम् (release from sin)

• avāpnuyāt: would obtain/may obtain
• avāpnuyāt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ava-√āp (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; कर्तरि

Speaker

Nārada

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Somnātha (Prabhāsa-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Nārada, vīṇā in hand, seated near a sacred shoreline/temple precinct, begins proclaiming Somnātha’s glory to attentive listeners; the sea breeze, temple spire, and liṅga sanctum are suggested in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Nārada
• Somanātha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śravaṇa (devout listening) to tīrtha-māhātmya is itself a purifying dharma that destroys sin and turns the mind toward Śiva.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Somanātha—classically associated with Prabhāsa-kṣetra on the western coast (Gujarat) and celebrated as a major Śiva tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Hearing (śravaṇa) and proclamation (kīrtana) of Somanātha māhātmya are stated as sin-destroying practices.