Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

ऋषय ऊचुः । मुंडीरः पूर्वदिग्भागे धरित्र्याः श्रूयते किल । मध्ये कालप्रियो देवो मूलस्थानं तदन्तरे

Transliteration

ṛṣaya ūcuḥ | muṃḍīraḥ pūrvadigbhāge dharitryāḥ śrūyate kila | madhye kālapriyo devo mūlasthānaṃ tadantare

Translation

Die Weisen sprachen: „Man hört in der Tat, dass Muṇḍīra im östlichen Teil des Landes liegt; in der Mitte steht die Gottheit Kālapriya; und zwischen beiden befindet sich Mūlasthāna.“

Word by Word

• ऋषयः: the sages
• ऋषयः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋषि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• ऊचुः: said
• ऊचुः: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• मुंडीरः: Muṇḍīra (a place/deity name)
• मुंडीरः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुंडीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• पूर्व-दिग्-भागे: in the eastern quarter/region
• पूर्व-दिग्-भागे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + दिक् (प्रातिपदिक) + भाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘पूर्वायाः दिशः भागः’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

• धरित्र्याः: of the earth
• धरित्र्याः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धरित्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• श्रूयते: is heard/is said
• श्रूयते: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)

• किल: indeed, it is said
• किल: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: किल (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), प्रसिद्ध्यर्थ/श्रुत्यर्थ

• मध्ये: in the middle
• मध्ये: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मध्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; अव्ययीभाववत् प्रयोगः (as ‘in the middle’)

• काल-प्रियः: dear to Time / Kāla-beloved
• काल-प्रियः: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रिय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ‘कालस्य प्रियः’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

• देवः: the god
• देवः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• मूल-स्थानम्: the root-seat/original abode
• मूल-स्थानम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मूल (प्रातिपदिक) + स्थान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन; ‘मूलस्य स्थानम्’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

• तद्-अन्तरे: in between that / in its interval
• तद्-अन्तरे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘तस्य अन्तरे’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

Speaker

Ṛṣayaḥ (the sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (with nodes: Muṇḍīra, Kālapriya, Mūlasthāna)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sūta

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A council of ṛṣis gestures to an imagined sacred map: the eastern Muṇḍīra, the central Kālapriya shrine, and the intermediary Mūlasthāna, with subtle directional emblems.

Characters & Entities

• Muṇḍīra
• Kālapriya
• Mūlasthāna

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is also cartography of the sacred: knowing direction and placement helps devotees align movement with dharma and worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Muṇḍīra, Kālapriya, and Mūlasthāna—presented with directional placement as a connected sacred complex.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite; the sages seek clarification about origins and arrangement, implying a pilgrimage circuit and darśana sequence.