Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

चैत्रशुक्लतृतीयायां मध्याह्ने द्विजसत्तमाः । नक्षत्रे यमदैवत्ये मार्तंडस्य च वासरे

Transliteration

caitraśuklatṛtīyāyāṃ madhyāhne dvijasattamāḥ | nakṣatre yamadaivatye mārtaṃḍasya ca vāsare

Translation

O Beste der Zweifachgeborenen! Es geschah zur Mittagszeit, am dritten Mondtag der hellen Monatshälfte des Caitra, unter dem von Yama beherrschten Sternbild, und am Tage des Mārtaṇḍa (der Sonne).

Word by Word

• चैत्र-शुक्ल-तृतीयायाम्: on the bright third (tithi) of Caitra
• चैत्र-शुक्ल-तृतीयायाम्: Adhikarana (Time locus/काल-अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चैत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + शुक्ल (प्रातिपदिक) + तृतीया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular); तिथिवाचक (denoting lunar day)

• मध्याह्ने: at midday
• मध्याह्ने: Adhikarana (Time locus/काल-अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मध्याह्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• द्विज-सत्तमाः: the best of the twice-born (Brahmins)
• द्विज-सत्तमाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक) + सत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• नक्षत्रे: when the lunar mansion (nakṣatra) is
• नक्षत्रे: Adhikarana (Time locus/काल-अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नक्षत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• यम-दैवत्ये: having Yama as the presiding deity
• यम-दैवत्ये: Adhikarana (Time qualifier/अधिकरण-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक) + दैवत्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular); नक्षत्रविशेषण (qualifier of nakṣatra)

• मार्तण्डस्य: of the Sun (Mārtaṇḍa)
• मार्तण्डस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मार्तण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular)

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

• वासरे: on the day (weekday)
• वासरे: Adhikarana (Time locus/काल-अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वासर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Narrator (purāṇic narrator within Tīrthamāhātmya context; exact speaker not explicit in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvija-sattamāḥ (best of twice-born)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A luminous midday scene over a sacred waterbody; priests/learned brāhmaṇas note the calendar; the sun stands high; subtle zodiacal/astral motifs hover as symbolic emblems of tithi and nakṣatra.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Mārtaṇḍa (Sūrya)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It teaches that tīrtha-related merit is intensified when performed at a specifically sanctified conjunction of tithi, weekday, and nakṣatra.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sets the auspicious time for a tīrtha episode in Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya; the exact tīrtha name is implied by the surrounding chapter context rather than stated in this line.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A precise auspicious time is indicated (Caitra śukla tṛtīyā, midday, Yama-associated nakṣatra, Sunday), typically used to frame snāna or tīrtha observances.