Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

नैमिषं चैव केदारं पुष्करं कृमिजांगलम् । वाराणसी कुरुक्षेत्रं प्रभासं हाटकेश्वरम्

Transliteration

naimiṣaṃ caiva kedāraṃ puṣkaraṃ kṛmijāṃgalam | vārāṇasī kurukṣetraṃ prabhāsaṃ hāṭakeśvaram

Translation

Naimiṣa und Kedāra, Puṣkara und Kṛmijāṅgala; Vārāṇasī, Kurukṣetra, Prabhāsa und Hāṭakeśvara—dies sind die acht berühmten heiligen Kṣetras.

Word by Word

• नैमिषम्: Naimiṣa (tīrtha)
• नैमिषम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैमिष (प्रातिपदिक; तीर्थ-नाम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Coordination/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• एव: indeed/also
• एव: Avadharana (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक-निपात (emphatic particle)

• केदारम्: Kedāra
• केदारम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: केदार (प्रातिपदिक; तीर्थ-नाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• पुष्करम्: Puṣkara
• पुष्करम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुष्कर (प्रातिपदिक; तीर्थ-नाम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• कृमिजाङ्गलम्: Kṛmijāṅgala (tīrtha/place-name)
• कृमिजाङ्गलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृमि (प्रातिपदिक) + जाङ्गल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (कृमिणां जाङ्गलम्)

• वाराणसी: Vārāṇasī
• वाराणसी: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाराणसी (प्रातिपदिक; नगरी-नाम)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Kurukṣetra
• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरु (प्रातिपदिक) + क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (कुरूणां क्षेत्रम्)

• प्रभासम्: Prabhāsa
• प्रभासम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रभास (प्रातिपदिक; तीर्थ-नाम)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• हाटकेश्वरम्: Hāṭakeśvara (tīrtha/deity)
• हाटकेश्वरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हाटक (प्रातिपदिक) + ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (हाटकस्य ईश्वरः)

Speaker

Narrative voice (contextual; likely Sūta continuing the tīrtha-listing)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Aṣṭa-kṣetra: Naimiṣa–Kedāra–Puṣkara–Kṛmijāṅgala–Vārāṇasī–Kurukṣetra–Prabhāsa–Hāṭakeśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A litany-like tableau: eight sacred landscapes appear as emblematic vignettes—forest hermitages of Naimiṣa, snowy Kedāra peak, lotus-strewn Puṣkara lake, a less-known Kṛmijāṅgala shrine-land, Gaṅgā ghats of Vārāṇasī, the wide dharma plain of Kurukṣetra, the sea-washed Prabhāsa coast with Somnātha, and a golden-hued Hāṭakeśvara liṅga-temple.

Characters & Entities

• Naimiṣa
• Kedāra
• Puṣkara
• Kṛmijāṅgala
• Vārāṇasī
• Kurukṣetra
• Prabhāsa
• Hāṭakeśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is supported by sacred geography: venerating and remembering great tīrthas cultivates faith and orientation toward liberation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A set of eight famed kṣetras is invoked, culminating in Hāṭakeśvara, which the chapter will elevate as supreme.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is prescribed here; it functions as a canonical list preparing for the teaching on tīrtha-snānā (sacred bathing).