Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

अष्टषष्टिविभागेन भूत्वा रूपैः पृथग्विधैः । अष्टषष्टिषु क्षेत्रेषु तस्य ताः संस्थिताः सदा

Transliteration

aṣṭaṣaṣṭivibhāgena bhūtvā rūpaiḥ pṛthagvidhaiḥ | aṣṭaṣaṣṭiṣu kṣetreṣu tasya tāḥ saṃsthitāḥ sadā

Translation

In sechsundsechzig Teile geteilt und in mannigfaltigen Gestalten erschienen, bleiben jene Mütter immerdar in den sechsundsechzig heiligen Gefilden, die ihm gehören, gegründet.

Word by Word

• अष्टषष्टि-विभागेन: by the division into sixty-eight parts
• अष्टषष्टि-विभागेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अष्टषष्टि (प्रातिपदिक) + विभाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• भूत्वा: having become
• भूत्वा: Kriya (Adverbial participle/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund), पूर्वकालिक क्रिया

• रूपैः: with forms
• रूपैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• पृथक्-विधैः: of different kinds, distinct
• पृथक्-विधैः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पृथक् (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिकवत्) + विध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (रूपैः); समासः कर्मधारयः (पृथग्विधाः = पृथक् विधाः)

• अष्टषष्टिषु: in the sixty-eight
• अष्टषष्टिषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अष्टषष्टि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (संख्याशब्दः); अधिकरणे

• क्षेत्रेषु: in the sacred fields/regions
• क्षेत्रेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• तस्य: of him
• तस्य: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• ताः: they (fem.)
• ताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• संस्थिताः: were stationed/settled
• संस्थिताः: Kriya (State/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्+स्था (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्तरि/स्थितिवाचक (ताः)

• सदा: always
• सदा: Kriya-visheshana (Temporal/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb)

Speaker

Sūta (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Ṣaṭ-ṣaṣṭi Mātṛ-kṣetra-maṇḍala (66-fold Mātṛ seats)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The Mothers divide and assume distinct forms, each enthroned in her own kṣetra, forming a sacred mandala of sixty-six seats.

Characters & Entities

• Mātaraḥ (Mātṛkās)
• Kṣetra (sacred fields)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred power is not confined to one spot; divine energies manifest in many forms across a network of holy places, sustaining dharma everywhere.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse praises the kṣetra-network (sixty-six kṣetras) within the Hāṭakeśvara/Luptatīrtha māhātmya setting of Nāgarakhaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is stated; the focus is on the theological geography of the kṣetras.