Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

ततो नृपगृहे जाता तत्प्रभावाद्द्विजोत्तमाः । पूर्वकर्मविपाकेन संजाता विष कन्यका

Transliteration

tato nṛpagṛhe jātā tatprabhāvāddvijottamāḥ | pūrvakarmavipākena saṃjātā viṣa kanyakā

Translation

Then, O best of Brahmins, by the influence of that deed, she was born in the king’s household. Through the ripening of her former karma, she came to be a ‘poison-maiden’ (viṣakanyā).

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: Sambandha (Temporal/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अपादानार्थक/क्रमबोधक (then/from there)

• नृपगृहे: in the king's house
• नृपगृहे: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप-गृह (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; नृपस्य गृहं इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• जाता: was born
• जाता: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जन् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृत् (past passive participle/क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; "born/come into being"

• तत्प्रभावात्: due to that influence/power
• तत्प्रभावात्: Hetu/Apadana (Cause/Ablative/हेतु/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद्-प्रभाव (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/पञ्चमी), एकवचन; तस्य प्रभावः इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः; ablative of cause

• द्विजोत्तमाः: O best of the twice-born (Brahmins)
• द्विजोत्तमाः: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज-उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः—"उत्तमाः द्विजाः"; संबोधन/उद्देश्यरूपेण (addressed)

• पूर्वकर्मविपाकेन: by the fruition of former karma
• पूर्वकर्मविपाकेन: Karana/Hetu (Instrument/Cause/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूर्व-कर्म-विपाक (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; (पूर्वस्य कर्मणः) विपाकः इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः; instrumental of cause

• संजाता: was born/arose
• संजाता: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-जन् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृत् (past passive participle/क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; "arisen/been born"

• विष: poison
• विष: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक-रूपेण पूर्वपद (compound member); here used as first member in compound with कन्यका

• कन्यका: a maiden/girl
• कन्यका: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कन्यका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; here appositional: "(as) a maiden"; often forms compound विषकन्यका

Speaker

Sūta (deduced from immediate context; sages inquire next and Sūta answers thereafter)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣayaḥ

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A royal palace interior where a girl is born amid attendants; auspicious court imagery contrasts with subtle ominous signs—darkened aura near the infant, a serpent/poison motif in decorative shadows—signifying the viṣakanyā destiny.

Characters & Entities

• nṛpa (king)
• viṣakanyākā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It emphasizes karma-vipāka: past actions mature into concrete life circumstances, shaping birth and destiny.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse is part of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya flow; the explicit tīrtha description appears later in the same adhyāya (the pond/holy waters).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed in this verse; it sets up the karmic narrative used to frame the tīrtha’s sanctity.