Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 58

Devanagari script

क्रीडनार्थमिहायातः कैलासं पर्वतोत्तमम् । हृदिस्थो हि सदा नॄणामास्थितो भगवन्प्रभो

Transliteration

krīḍanārthamihāyātaḥ kailāsaṃ parvatottamam | hṛdistho hi sadā nṝṇāmāsthito bhagavanprabho

Translation

(Nārada sprach:) «Du bist hierher gekommen, zum Kailāsa, dem erhabensten der Berge, um deine Līlā, das göttliche Spiel, zu vollziehen. Und doch, o gesegneter Herr, weilst du stets fest im Herzen der Menschen.»

Word by Word

• krīḍana-artham: for the sake of play
• krīḍana-artham: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: krīḍana (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; प्रयोजनार्थक-तत्पुरुषः (क्रिडनस्य अर्थः)

• iha: here
• iha: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• āyataḥ: has come
• āyataḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā (धाातु) + ā- (उपसर्ग) ; āyata (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/क्तवत्-प्रत्ययार्थ), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘आगतः/आयातः’ (having come)

• kailāsam: to Kailāsa
• kailāsam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kailāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• parvata-uttamam: the best mountain
• parvata-uttamam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parvata (प्रातिपदिक) + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (उत्तमः पर्वतः) — ‘श्रेष्ठं पर्वतम्’ इति विशेषणम्

• hṛdi-sthaḥ: dwelling in the heart
• hṛdi-sthaḥ: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hṛd (प्रातिपदिक) + stha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सप्तमी-तत्पुरुषः (हृदि स्थितः)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (emphatic/causal particle)

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• nṝṇām: of men
• nṝṇām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन

• āsthitaḥ: abides
• āsthitaḥ: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (धातु) + ā- (उपसर्ग) ; āsthita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘स्थितः/आस्थितः’ (abiding, established)

• bhagavan: O Blessed Lord
• bhagavan: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; ‘भगवन्’ (vocative)

• prabho: O Lord
• prabho: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन; ‘प्रभो’ (vocative)

Speaker

Nārada

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kailāsa

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Bhagavān Prabhu (Śiva)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Nārada, in reverent address, gestures toward snow-bright Kailāsa while indicating the heart (hṛdaya) to signify Śiva’s indwelling presence; Śiva’s serene majesty suggests both cosmic abode and intimate nearness.

Characters & Entities

• Nārada
• Śiva
• Kailāsa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva may be approached in exalted sacred realms like Kailāsa, yet he is also the ever-present indweller of the devotee’s heart.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kailāsa, ‘the best of mountains,’ is explicitly praised, within the Kedāra Khaṇḍa Himalayan sacred setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse frames pilgrimage space (Kailāsa) alongside inner devotion (heart-abidance).