Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

सूत उवाच । धर्मराजेश्वरोत्थं च माहात्म्यं द्विजसत्तमाः । यन्मया प्रश्रुतं पुण्यं सकाशात्स्वपितुः पुरा

Transliteration

sūta uvāca | dharmarājeśvarotthaṃ ca māhātmyaṃ dvijasattamāḥ | yanmayā praśrutaṃ puṇyaṃ sakāśātsvapituḥ purā

Translation

Sūta sprach: O ihr Besten unter den Zweimalgeborenen, ich will die heilige Größe (Māhātmya) verkünden, die im Zusammenhang mit Dharmarājeśvara entstand—wahrhaft verdienstvoll—und die ich einst vor langer Zeit von meinem eigenen Vater hörte.

Word by Word

• सूतः: Sūta
• सूतः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• धर्मराजेश्वरोत्थम्: arisen from Dharmarājeśvara / concerning Dharmarājeśvara’s origin
• धर्मराजेश्वरोत्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धर्मराजेश्वर-उत्थ (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (माहात्म्यस्य)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• माहात्म्यम्: the sacred greatness (account)
• माहात्म्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माहात्म्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• द्विजसत्तमाः: O best of the twice-born (brahmins)
• द्विजसत्तमाः: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज-सत्तम (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; सम्बोधनार्थे प्रथमा (vocative sense)

• यत्: which
• यत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• मया: by me
• मया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उभयलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; करणम् (agent/instrument)

• प्रश्रुतम्: heard
• प्रश्रुतम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-श्रु (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मविशेषणम् (यत्)

• पुण्यम्: meritorious; holy
• पुण्यम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (यत्/माहात्म्य)

• सकाशात्: from (the presence of)
• सकाशात्: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सकाश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; अपादानार्थक (ablatival adverb: 'from the presence of')

• स्वपितुः: of my own father
• स्वपितुः: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्व-पितृ (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध (genitive)

• पुरा: formerly
• पुरा: Kala (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmarājeśvara (within Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Dvija-sattamāḥ (assembly of eminent brāhmaṇas/ṛṣis)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sūta seated in a forest hermitage assembly, addressing attentive brāhmaṇa sages; behind him, a symbolic vignette of a Śiva-liṅga labeled Dharmarājeśvara, indicating the topic about to be unfolded.

Characters & Entities

• Sūta
• Dharmarājeśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred place-glorifications (māhātmya) are to be received through authentic lineage-hearing (śruti/smṛti transmission) and are themselves meritorious.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dharmarājeśvara-tīrtha (introduced as the subject of the forthcoming māhātmya).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed here; it establishes the act of hearing the māhātmya as puṇya.