Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 38

Devanagari script

विभवस्ते महाभाग प्रणश्यति निशाक्षये । एतत्कीर्तय मे गुह्यं न चेत्प्रेतप संस्थितम् । अत्र कौतूहलं जातं दृष्ट्वेदं सुविचेष्टितम्

Transliteration

vibhavaste mahābhāga praṇaśyati niśākṣaye | etatkīrtaya me guhyaṃ na cetpretapa saṃsthitam | atra kautūhalaṃ jātaṃ dṛṣṭvedaṃ suviceṣṭitam

Translation

„O Glückseliger, dein Glanz vergeht, wenn die Nacht zu Ende geht. Verkünde mir dieses Geheimnis; sonst müsstest du wahrlich als Herr der Pretas fest gegründet sein. Beim Anblick dieses wohlgeordneten Wunders ist in mir große Neugier erwacht.“

Word by Word

• vibhavaḥ: prosperity, wealth
• vibhavaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vibhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• te: of you/your
• te: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• mahābhāga: O fortunate one
• mahābhāga: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + bhāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• praṇaśyati: perishes, is destroyed
• praṇaśyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√naś (नश् धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• niśā-kṣaye: at the end of the night
• niśā-kṣaye: Adhikarana (Location/Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niśā (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; (niśāyāḥ kṣaye)

• etat: this
• etat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• kīrtaya: tell, proclaim
• kīrtaya: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kīrt (कीर्त् धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• me: to me
• me: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• guhyam: secret
• guhyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: guhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषण

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• cet: if
• cet: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: cet (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/शर्त-अव्यय (conditional particle: 'if')

• preta-pa: O guardian of the departed (O Pretapa)
• preta-pa: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: preta (प्रातिपदिक) + pa (पा/प धातु-प्रत्ययान्त प्रातिपदिक, 'protector/keeper')
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; (pretān pāti iti)

• saṃsthitam: situated, established
• saṃsthitam: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Predicate adjective/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-√sthā (स्था धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; 'situated/established'

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place)

• kautūhalam: curiosity
• kautūhalam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kautūhala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• jātam: has arisen
• jātam: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (जन् धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; 'arisen'

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Hetu (Cause/Reason/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √dṛś (दृश् धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (absolutive/gerund)

• idam: this
• idam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• su-viceṣṭitam: well-performed act/deed
• su-viceṣṭitam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + viceṣṭita (प्रातिपदिक; √ceṣṭ 'to act/strive')
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP) अर्थे विशेषण

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in Purāṇic narration; direct speech by the Śūdra within the narrative)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara (implied)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A seeker addresses a radiant, uncanny preta whose splendor fades at dawn; the seeker, astonished, requests the secret behind the well-ordered marvel.

Characters & Entities

• Pretarāja (implied by preta-pa)
• preta (spirit)
• niśā (night)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even extraordinary power is time-bound; seeking the ‘secret’ behind it turns curiosity into spiritual inquiry aligned with dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse signals a tīrtha-related secret, but the precise site name is not present within this line alone.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse is a request for revelation rather than an injunction.