Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

पृष्ट्वापृष्ट्वा च गंतव्यं चित्रगुप्तं धरातले । गंतव्यं जननाशाय समये समुपस्थिते

Transliteration

pṛṣṭvāpṛṣṭvā ca gaṃtavyaṃ citraguptaṃ dharātale | gaṃtavyaṃ jananāśāya samaye samupasthite

Translation

Indem man immer wieder nachfragt, soll man auf Erden zu Citragupta gehen. Wenn die bestimmte Zeit herangekommen ist, muss man sich auf den Weg machen — damit der Kreislauf der Geburten ein Ende finde.

Word by Word

• pṛṣṭvā: having asked
• pṛṣṭvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Absolutive/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: prach (धातु) + ktvā (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्तम् = having asked

• apṛṣṭvā: without asking
• apṛṣṭvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Absolutive/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: a- (निषेध) + prach (धातु) + ktvā (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्तम्; नञ्-पूर्वकः = without asking / having not asked

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्ययम् (conjunction)

• gantavyam: should go / must proceed
• gantavyam: Kriyā (Obligation/विधि)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु) + tavya (तव्यत्)
• Form: तव्यत्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्तम्; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचनम्; विधेय-भावः (gerundive: must be gone/should go)

• citraguptam: Citragupta
• citraguptam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: citra (प्रातिपदिक) + gupta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समासः (चित्रः गुप्तः इति); पुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया-विभक्तिः एकवचनम् (Acc. sg.)

• dharātale: on the earth/ground
• dharātale: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharā (प्रातिपदिक) + tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समासः (षष्ठी: धरायाः तलम्); नपुंसकलिङ्गे सप्तमी-विभक्तिः एकवचनम् (Loc. sg.)

• gantavyam: must go
• gantavyam: Kriyā (Obligation/विधि)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु) + tavya (तव्यत्)
• Form: तव्यत्-कृदन्तम्; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचनम्; पुनरुक्त्या बलम् (repetition for emphasis)

• jananāśāya: for the destruction of people
• jananāśāya: Sampradāna (Purpose/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक) + nāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समासः (षष्ठी: जनस्य नाशः); चतुर्थी-विभक्तिः एकवचनम् (Dat. sg.) = for the destruction of people

• samaye: at the time
• samaye: Adhikaraṇa (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे सप्तमी-विभक्तिः एकवचनम् (Loc. sg.)

• samupasthite: when (the time) has come
• samupasthite: Adhikaraṇa (Time-circumstance/अधिकरण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-upa-√sthā (स्था धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle); पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्गे सप्तमी-विभक्तिः एकवचनम् (Loc. sg.)—‘when (it) has arrived/being present’

Speaker

Narrative voice (contextual Purāṇic narrator; specific speaker not explicit in the verse)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A scribe-deity (Citragupta) with palm-leaf ledger and stylus is envisioned as the earthly-facing registrar of deeds; seekers approach with repeated questions as the ‘appointed time’ looms.

Characters & Entities

• Citragupta

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Human destiny unfolds under dharma and karma; at the destined time one must face divine accounting, aiming ultimately at release from repeated birth.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse itself stresses karmic reckoning (Citragupta) rather than naming a tīrtha; the surrounding chapter context points toward the Hāṭakeśvara sacred field.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual (snāna, dāna, japa) is stated in this verse; it frames a doctrinal point about time, karma, and liberation.