Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

येनास्मद्वचनाच्छीघ्रं तल्लिंगं निदधाति सः । नो चेद्भविष्यति व्यक्तमकाले चापि संक्षयः । त्रैलोक्यस्यापि कृत्स्नस्य सत्यमेतन्मयोदितम्

Transliteration

yenāsmadvacanācchīghraṃ talliṃgaṃ nidadhāti saḥ | no cedbhaviṣyati vyaktamakāle cāpi saṃkṣayaḥ | trailokyasyāpi kṛtsnasya satyametanmayoditam

Translation

Wer, unserem Wort folgend, jenen Liṅga rasch wieder aufrichtet, wird die Gefahr abwenden. Andernfalls wird offenkundig Verderben eintreten, sogar vor der bestimmten Zeit, für die Gesamtheit der drei Welten. Dies ist die Wahrheit, die ich verkünde.

Word by Word

• येन: by whom
• येन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन — 'by whom/whereby'

• अस्मत्: our
• अस्मत्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन — 'of us/our' (in compound)

• वचनात्: from (our) command
• वचनात्: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वचन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन — 'from (our) word/command'

• शीघ्रम्: quickly
• शीघ्रम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शीघ्रम् (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक-नपुंसक)
• Form: रीतिवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: quickly)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन — qualifying 'liṅgam'

• लिङ्गम्: liṅga
• लिङ्गम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• निदधाति: places
• निदधाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि + धा (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद — 'places/sets down'

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• नः: not
• नः: Sambandha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नः (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• चेत्: if
• चेत्: Sambandha (Condition/शर्त)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: चेत् (अव्यय)
• Form: शर्तार्थक-अव्यय (conditional particle: if)

• भविष्यति: will occur
• भविष्यति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद — 'will be/occur'

• व्यक्तम्: clearly
• व्यक्तम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: व्यक्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक-अव्यय (adverb: clearly, certainly)

• अकाले: at the wrong time
• अकाले: Adhikarana (Temporal locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अकाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन — 'at an untimely time'

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

• अपि: even, also
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्भावना/समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (also/even)

• संक्षयः: destruction
• संक्षयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संक्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन — 'destruction'

• त्रैलोक्यस्य: of the three worlds
• त्रैलोक्यस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रि + लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः — 'of the three worlds'

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (also/even)

• कृत्स्नस्य: entire
• कृत्स्नस्य: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृत्स्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन — qualifying 'trailokyasya' ('entire')

• सत्यम्: true
• सत्यम्: Pratijna (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन — 'truth' / predicate nominal

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन — 'this'

• मया: by me
• मया: Karana (Agent/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन — 'by me'

• उदितम्: spoken
• उदितम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उद् + इ (धातु) + त (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — 'said/uttered'

Speaker

Brahmā

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Liṅga-sthāna in Anarta (implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Deva assembly

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A commanding figure addresses the gods, pointing toward the fallen liṅga; a vision shows two futures: restoration leading to calm, neglect leading to premature cosmic collapse.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Liṅga
• Trailokya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is not passive: restoring sacred order (here, the liṅga) is portrayed as protecting the cosmos itself.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The sanctified zone is the Anarta-region Śaiva locus where the liṅga must be re-installed; the detailed tirtha-mahātmyam continues beyond this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Liṅga re-establishment/installation (nidadhāti)—a form of restoring the deity’s emblem to its rightful seat.