Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

सुपर्णाक्षं सहस्राक्षे सुसूक्ष्मं कार्तिकेश्वरे । भवं वस्त्रापथे देवि ह्युग्रं कनखले तथा

Transliteration

suparṇākṣaṃ sahasrākṣe susūkṣmaṃ kārtikeśvare | bhavaṃ vastrāpathe devi hyugraṃ kanakhale tathā

Translation

In Sahasrākṣa wird Er als Suparṇākṣa verehrt; in Kārtikeśvara als Susūkṣma, der Allersubtilste. O Devī, in Vastrāpatha ehrt man Ihn als Bhava, den Ursprung des Werdens, und in Kanakhala als Ugra, den grimmigen Beschützer.

Word by Word

• सुपर्णाक्षम्: Suparṇākṣa (name/form)
• सुपर्णाक्षम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुपर्णाक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (सुपर्णः + अक्षः/अक्षि)

• सहस्राक्षे: at Sahasrākṣa
• सहस्राक्षे: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सहस्राक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; समासः—बहुव्रीहिः (सहस्राणि अक्षाणि यस्य)

• सुसूक्ष्मम्: the very subtle one (name/form)
• सुसूक्ष्मम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुसूक्ष्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (सु + सूक्ष्म)

• कार्तिकेश्वरे: at Kārtikeśvara
• कार्तिकेश्वरे: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कार्तिकेश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (कार्तिकस्य + ईश्वरः)

• भवम्: Bhava (a name of Śiva)
• भवम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• वस्त्रापथे: at Vastrāpatha
• वस्त्रापथे: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वस्त्रापथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (वस्त्रस्य + पथः)

• देवि: O Goddess
• देवि: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चय/कारणार्थक (particle: indeed/for)

• उग्रम्: Ugra (the fierce one; name/form)
• उग्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उग्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• कनखले: at Kanakhala
• कनखले: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कनखल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; स्थाननाम

• तथा: also
• तथा: Sambandha (Modifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थे (adverb: likewise)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (with a quoted address 'devī' preserved in the verse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sahasrākṣa / Kārtikeśvara / Vastrāpatha / Kanakhala (clustered listing)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Four shrines with distinct iconography: Sahasrākṣa with a many-eyed cosmic motif; Kārtikeśvara with austere subtle light around a liṅga; Vastrāpatha with pilgrims offering cloth and garlands (vastra-dāna symbolism); Kanakhala on Gaṅgā banks with Ugra aspect—trident, protective aura, and river mist.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Devī
• Sahasrākṣa
• Kārtikeśvara
• Vastrāpatha
• Kanakhala
• Suparṇākṣa
• Susūkṣma
• Bhava
• Ugra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is also remembrance: each tīrtha trains the mind to approach the same Lord through a particular divine quality—subtlety, fierceness, or creative power.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Sahasrākṣa, Kārtikeśvara, Vastrāpatha, and Kanakhala.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None is directly prescribed; the emphasis is on nāma-smaraṇa (recalling Śiva’s site-linked names).