Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

एतत्क्षेत्रं प्रदत्तं नः पूर्वेषां च द्विजन्मनाम् । महेश्वरेण तुष्टेन पूरिते सर्पजे बिले

Transliteration

etatkṣetraṃ pradattaṃ naḥ pūrveṣāṃ ca dvijanmanām | maheśvareṇa tuṣṭena pūrite sarpaje bile

Translation

Dieses heilige Feld wurde uns und unseren Vorfahren, den Dvija, verliehen—von Maheśvara, der, zufrieden, die schlangengeborene Höhle auffüllte und so das Land sicher und geeignet machte.

Word by Word

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम-विशेषण (demonstrative adjective)

• क्षेत्रम्: field; sacred place
• क्षेत्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• प्रदत्तम्: given; bestowed
• प्रदत्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-√dā (धाातु) + datta (कृदन्त, क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; ‘क्षेत्रम्’ इति विशेषण

• नः: of us; to us
• नः: Sampradana/Adhikarana (Recipient/possessor context)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम (enclitic)

• पूर्वेषाम्: of the former/ancestors
• पूर्वेषाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; ‘द्विजन्मनाम्’ इत्यस्य विशेषण (genitive plural)

• च: and
• च: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• द्विजन्मनाम्: of the twice-born (Brahmins etc.)
• द्विजन्मनाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvi-janman (प्रातिपदिक); dvi + janman
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (द्वे जन्मनी यस्य/येषाम्)

• महेश्वरेण: by Maheśvara (Śiva)
• महेश्वरेण: Karana (Instrument/Agent in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maheśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; कर्मधारय (महान् ईश्वरः)

• तुष्टेन: being pleased
• तुष्टेन: Karana (Instrument/Agent in passive/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √tuṣ (धातु) + tuṣṭa (कृदन्त, क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; ‘महेश्वरेण’ इति विशेषण

• पूरिते: filled
• पूरिते: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √pṝ (धातु) + pūrita (कृदन्त, क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; ‘बिले’ इति विशेषण

• सर्पजे: snake-born; of a serpent
• सर्पजे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarpa-ja (प्रातिपदिक); sarpa + ja
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (सर्पात् जातम्/सर्पसम्बन्धि) ‘बिले’ इति विशेषण

• बिले: in the cave/hole
• बिले: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

Speaker

Unspecified (contextual: representative of the Nāgara brāhmaṇas speaking through the message)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Nāgara-kṣetra (as implied)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Maheśvara, pleased, sanctifies a newly granted field; a dark serpent-cavern is being filled/closed, transforming peril into habitable sacred land while brāhmaṇas witness the boon.

Characters & Entities

• Kṣetra
• Maheśvara (Śiva)
• Dvijas (brāhmaṇas/ancestors)
• Serpent cavern (sarpaja bila)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred lands are upheld by divine grace and inherited dharma; protecting such a kṣetra is a duty owed to Śiva and the ancestors.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse continues the Gartā-tīrtha-linked narrative and glorifies the kṣetra established/secured by Maheśvara’s intervention.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed; it asserts divine donation/authorization of the kṣetra (kṣetra-pradāna) and its sanctified origin.