Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 54

Devanagari script

ध्यात्वा च सुचिरं कालमानयामास तत्र च । पुष्करत्रितयं श्रेष्ठं ज्येष्ठमध्यकनीयकम्

Transliteration

dhyātvā ca suciraṃ kālamānayāmāsa tatra ca | puṣkaratritayaṃ śreṣṭhaṃ jyeṣṭhamadhyakanīyakam

Translation

Nachdem er sehr lange meditiert hatte, brachte er dorthin die erhabenste Dreiheit von Puṣkara—die ältere, die mittlere und die jüngere (die Puṣkara-Tīrthas).

Word by Word

• dhyātvā: having meditated
• dhyātvā: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √dhyai (धातु) + tvā (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive/gerund)

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

• suciram: very long
• suciram: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sucira (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (accusative), एकवचन (singular); विशेषण of kālam

• kālam: time
• kālam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), द्वितीया (accusative), एकवचन (singular)

• ānayāmāsa: brought
• ānayāmāsa: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√nī (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (singular), परस्मैपद

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place)

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

• puṣkara-tritayam: the triad of Puṣkaras
• puṣkara-tritayam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣkara (प्रातिपदिक) + tritaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (accusative), एकवचन (singular)

• śreṣṭham: excellent
• śreṣṭham: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (accusative), एकवचन (singular); विशेषण of puṣkara-tritayam

• jyeṣṭha-madhya-kanīyakam: (consisting of) eldest, middle, and youngest
• jyeṣṭha-madhya-kanīyakam: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jyeṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक) + madhya (प्रातिपदिक) + kanīyaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (accusative), एकवचन (singular); समाहार-द्वन्द्व (collective dvandva) qualifying puṣkara-tritayam

Speaker

Narrative voice (Brahmā as the actor within the account)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Puṣkara-traya (Jyeṣṭha, Madhya, Kaniṣṭha)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: After long stillness, three radiant water-lotus forms emerge/descend into three designated pits; Brahmā’s posture shifts from meditation to gentle gesture of invocation; the air sparkles with mantra-like glyphs.

Characters & Entities

• Puṣkara-traya (Jyeṣṭha-Puṣkara, Madhya-Puṣkara, Kanīya-Puṣkara)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Meditation and divine resolve establish and protect sacred geography, making tīrthas accessible for devotees.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Puṣkara-traya—the three Puṣkara tīrthas described as elder, middle, and younger.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Meditation (dhyāna) is implied as the preparatory spiritual act; the verse mainly describes the manifestation/bringing of the tīrthas.