Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 54

Devanagari script

ततस्तु भगवानासीन्महानटवपुर्धरः । मुकुटाः पंचशीर्षे तु पन्नगैरुपशोभिताः

Transliteration

tatastu bhagavānāsīnmahānaṭavapurdharaḥ | mukuṭāḥ paṃcaśīrṣe tu pannagairupaśobhitāḥ

Translation

Dann erschien der erhabene Herr, die strahlende Gestalt des Großen Tänzers (Naṭarāja) annehmend; auf Seiner Krone schmückten ihn fünfköpfige Schlangen und mehrten Seine ehrfurchtgebietende Majestät.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = 'ततः/then, thereafter'

• तु: indeed, then
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/particle) = 'but/indeed'

• भगवान्: the Blessed Lord
• भगवान्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• आसीत्: was
• आसीत्: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• महानटवपुःधरः: bearing the form of a great dancer
• महानटवपुःधरः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महानट + वपुस् + धर (प्रातिपदिक; धर=धृ-धातुज)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (वपुः धरः = 'body-bearing'); 'महानट' इति विशेषणपूर्वपद

• मुकुटाः: crowns, diadems
• मुकुटाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुकुट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• पञ्चशीर्षे: on the five-headed (hood)
• पञ्चशीर्षे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पञ्च + शीर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; द्विगुसमासः (पञ्च शीर्षाणि यस्मिन्)

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात)

• पन्नगैः: by serpents
• पन्नगैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पन्नग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• उपशोभिताः: adorned, beautified
• उपशोभिताः: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उप-शोभ् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, Past Passive Participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; Nāgara-khaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva appears as the Great Dancer—towering, radiant—crowned with five-hooded serpents; the assembly freezes in awe as the music becomes an offering to the dance; flames/auras and swirling garments suggest motion.

Characters & Entities

• Bhagavān (Śiva as Naṭarāja/Great Dancer)
• Pannagas (serpents)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Lord reveals Himself in forms suited to uplift devotees; divine beauty and awe are presented as gateways to reverence and inner transformation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is within a tīrtha-māhātmya chapter, but this line focuses on the Lord’s appearance rather than naming the locality.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit instruction is given; it narrates a theophany (divine manifestation) central to the sanctity of the occasion.