Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 64

Devanagari script

विलोकयेद्योऽघविनाशनाय क्षणं प्रभुर्जन्मशतोद्भवाय

Transliteration

vilokayedyo'ghavināśanāya kṣaṇaṃ prabhurjanmaśatodbhavāya

Translation

Wer den Herrn auch nur einen Augenblick schaut, in der Absicht, Sünde zu vernichten, erlangt ein Verdienst, das sonst erst nach Hunderten von Geburten entstünde.

Word by Word

• विलोकयेत्: should behold
• विलोकयेत्: Kriya (क्रिया/Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + लोक् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध-प्रत्यय (relative pronoun)

• अघविनाशनाय: for the destruction of sin
• अघविनाशनाय: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान/Purpose-Dative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अघ (प्रातिपदिक) + विनाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (अघस्य विनाशनम्)

• क्षणम्: for a moment
• क्षणम्: Karma (कर्म/Extent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; काल-अवधि (extent of time)

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

• जन्मशतोद्भवाय: for (ending) the arising of hundreds of births (rebirths)
• जन्मशतोद्भवाय: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान/Purpose-Dative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जन्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + शत (प्रातिपदिक) + उद्भव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (जन्मशतात् उद्भवः/जन्मशतस्य उद्भवः)

Speaker

Brahmā (deduced from Brahmā–Nārada dialogue context in this adhyāya colophon)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nārada

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim catches a brief, intense glimpse of the Lord in a sanctum doorway; the moment is depicted as a burst of light washing away dark sin-symbols, while a timeline of many births collapses into that single instant.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhu (Lord)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even brief, sincere God-centered darśana can outweigh long karmic accumulation and rapidly purify sin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Within the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra Māhātmya setting, the emphasis here is on darśana of the Lord rather than a named bathing-ghāṭ or kuṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Darśana (beholding) of the Lord, even momentarily, with the purpose of agha-vināśa (sin-removal).