Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

अथ तद्वासवो दृष्ट्वा शुक्लतीर्थं प्रमुक्तिदम् । पूरयामास रजसा मानुषोत्थभयेन च

Transliteration

atha tadvāsavo dṛṣṭvā śuklatīrthaṃ pramuktidam | pūrayāmāsa rajasā mānuṣotthabhayena ca

Translation

Dann sah Vāsava (Indra) Śuklatīrtha, die Befreiung spendet, und füllte sie aus Staub auf, aus Furcht vor der von den Menschen ausgehenden Gefahr (wenn sie ihre Macht erlangten).

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• अथ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनन्तरार्थक (indeclinable; ‘then/thereupon’)

• तत्-वासवः: those Vasavas (gods)
• तत्-वासवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तत् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + वासव (प्रातिपदिक; इन्द्र/देव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषसमास (Masc.; Nom. pl.; ‘those Vasavas/Indras’)

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √दृश् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (gerund/absolutive; ‘having seen’)

• शुक्ल-तीर्थम्: the Śukla-tīrtha (pure ford)
• शुक्ल-तीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुक्ल (प्रातिपदिक) + तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन; कर्मधारयसमास (Neuter; Acc. sg.; ‘the white/pure tīrtha’)

• प्रमुक्ति-दम्: granting liberation
• प्रमुक्ति-दम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रमुक्ति (प्रातिपदिक) + द (प्रातिपदिक; ‘giver’)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन; तत्पुरुषसमास (Neuter; Acc. sg.; ‘giver of liberation’)

• पूरयामास: filled
• पूरयामास: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √पूरय्/पूर् (धातु; पूरणे)
• Form: लिट् (परिप्रश्न/कथन-परिपूर्णभूत); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद (Perfect; 3rd person; sg.; ‘filled’)

• रजसा: with dust
• रजसा: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रजस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया एकवचन (Neuter; Instr. sg.)

• मानुष-उत्थ-भयेन: due to fear arising from humans
• मानुष-उत्थ-भयेन: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मानुष (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्थ (कृदन्त; √स्था—उत्थाने, क्त; ‘arisen’) + भय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया एकवचन; तत्पुरुषसमास (Neuter; Instr. sg.; ‘by fear arising from humans’)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (indeclinable; conjunction ‘and’)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator within Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śuklatīrtha

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Indra, crowned and armed, surveys the shining Śuklatīrtha and commands it to be covered; dust and earth swirl as the luminous water is obscured, while the tīrtha’s glow still seeps through.

Characters & Entities

• Vāsava (Indra)
• Śuklatīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Extraordinary tīrthas can confer liberation, and even devas may fear the rise of human spiritual attainment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Śuklatīrtha, explicitly called ‘pramuktidam’ (giver of liberation).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No prescription; it narrates Indra’s attempt to cover the tīrtha with dust.