Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

सूत उवाच । भूयोपि शिवमाहात्म्यं वक्ष्यामि परमाद्भुतम् । शृण्वतां सर्वपापघ्नं भवपाशविमोचनम्

Transliteration

sūta uvāca | bhūyopi śivamāhātmyaṃ vakṣyāmi paramādbhutam | śṛṇvatāṃ sarvapāpaghnaṃ bhavapāśavimocanam

Translation

Sūta said: Once more I shall proclaim the supremely wondrous greatness of Śiva; by hearing it, all sins are destroyed and the bonds of worldly becoming are cut away.

Word by Word

• sūtaḥ: Sūta
• sūtaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• bhūyaḥ: again
• bhūyaḥ: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhūyas (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरर्थे (again, further)

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अपि-कार (also)

• śiva-māhātmyam: the glory of Śiva
• śiva-māhātmyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiva (प्रातिपदिक) + māhātmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (शिवस्य माहात्म्यम्)

• vakṣyāmi: I will tell
• vakṣyāmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future); उत्तमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• parama-adbhutam: supremely wondrous
• parama-adbhutam: Karma (Qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक) + adbhuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; कर्मधारय (परमं अद्भुतम्); विशेषण

• śṛṇvatām: of the listeners
• śṛṇvatām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: √śru (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्यय (present active participle) ‘śṛṇvat’; षष्ठी (Genitive) बहुवचन; “of those who listen”

• sarva-pāpa-ghnam: destroyer of all sins
• sarva-pāpa-ghnam: Karma (Qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + ghna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (सर्वाणि पापानि हन्ति इति)

• bhava-pāśa-vimocanam: liberating from the bonds of worldly existence
• bhava-pāśa-vimocanam: Karma (Qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhava (प्रातिपदिक) + pāśa (प्रातिपदिक) + vimocana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (भवस्य पाशः; तस्मात् विमोचनम्); विशेषण

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa/Sauti)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Naimiṣāraṇya (implied frame)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sages at Naimiṣāraṇya (Śaunaka-led, implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sūta seated on a vyāsāsana in a forest-kshetra, sages in a circle with kuśa grass seats; a subtle aura or liṅga emblem behind Sūta indicating Śiva-māhātmya; the atmosphere suggests a sacred discourse that ‘cuts bonds’.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Sūta

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śravaṇa of Śiva-māhātmya is itself purifying and liberating—devotional listening becomes a means to loosen saṃsāra.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this opening; it introduces a new Śiva-māhātmya section that may later connect to specific sacred places.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The implied practice is śravaṇa—reverent listening to Śiva’s greatness as a dhārmic discipline.