Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 20

Devanagari script

तेऽपि वह्निमुखा देवाः प्रजग्मुर्मंदराचलम् । बभ्रमुस्तत्र तत्रैव विचिन्वाना महेश्वरम्

Transliteration

te'pi vahnimukhā devāḥ prajagmurmaṃdarācalam | babhramustatra tatraiva vicinvānā maheśvaram

Translation

Auch jene Götter — von Agni angeführt — brachen zum Berge Mandara auf. Dort irrten sie umher und suchten immer wieder nach Maheśvara.

Word by Word

• te: they
• te: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/अपि-कार

• vahni-mukhāḥ: having Agni as their leader/front
• vahni-mukhāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vahni (प्रातिपदिक) + mukha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (वह्नेः मुखं येषाम्/वह्निमुखाः) विशेषण (devāḥ)

• devāḥ: the gods
• devāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• prajagmuḥ: went forth
• prajagmuḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra+√gam (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• mandara-acalam: Mandara mountain
• mandara-acalam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mandara (प्रातिपदिक) + acala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्मधारय (मन्दरः अचलः)

• babhramuḥ: wandered
• babhramuḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhram (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक

• tatra: here and there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरुक्ति (repetition for emphasis)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण

• vicinvānāḥ: searching
• vicinvānāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi+√ci (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्त (शतृ/शानच्), परस्मैपदीय-प्रयोग; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (devāḥ)

• maheśvaram: Maheshvara (Śiva)
• maheśvaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maheśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

Speaker

Deductive (Tīrthamāhātmya narrator within Nāgarakhaṇḍa; exact speaker not in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mandarācala

Type: peak

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Agni at the fore leads a company of devas across rugged slopes of Mandara; they fan out, searching among groves and crags for signs of Maheśvara—footprints, aura, or sacred trees.

Characters & Entities

• Agni
• Devas
• Mandarācala
• Maheśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even the gods seek the Lord with effort; sacred landscapes become arenas of divine seeking and revelation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Mount Mandara (Mandarācala) is explicitly mentioned as the sacred locale of the episode.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is stated; it narrates a sacred journey and search for Śiva.