Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

। मांडव्य उवाच । ग्रहीष्यामि सुरश्रेष्ठा वरं युष्मत्समुद्रवम् । परं मे निर्णयं चैकं धर्मराजः प्रचक्षतु

Transliteration

| māṃḍavya uvāca | grahīṣyāmi suraśreṣṭhā varaṃ yuṣmatsamudravam | paraṃ me nirṇayaṃ caikaṃ dharmarājaḥ pracakṣatu

Translation

Māṇḍavya dijo: «Oh, excelsos entre los dioses, aceptaré el don que me ofrecéis. Pero que Dharma-rāja me declare un último y decisivo juicio».

Word by Word

• māṃḍavyaḥ: Māṇḍavya
• māṃḍavyaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māṃḍavya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचनम् — proper noun ‘Māṇḍavya’

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Speech act/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत) प्रथमपुरुष एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम् — ‘said’

• grahīṣyāmi: I will accept
• grahīṣyāmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √grah (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (भविष्यत्) उत्तमपुरुष एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम् — ‘I will accept’

• suraśreṣṭhāḥ: O best of the gods
• suraśreṣṭhāḥ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे सम्बोधन बहुवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः — ‘O best of the gods’

• varam: a boon
• varam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम् — ‘boon’

• yuṣmat-samudravam: granted by you
• yuṣmat-samudravam: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yuṣmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + samudrava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः — ‘bestowed/coming from you’ (qualifying varam)

• param: supreme
• param: Karma (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम् — ‘supreme/ultimate’ (qualifying nirṇayam)

• me: my
• me: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी एकवचनस्य एन्क्लिटिक-रूपम् — ‘my/of me’

• nirṇayam: decision
• nirṇayam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nirṇaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम् — ‘decision/judgment’

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक) — ‘and’

• ekam: one
• ekam: Karma (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम् — ‘one/single’ (qualifying nirṇayam)

• dharmarājaḥ: Dharmarāja
• dharmarājaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक) + rāja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः — ‘King of Dharma’ (Yama)

• pracakṣatu: let him declare
• pracakṣatu: Kriya (Imperative/आज्ञा)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra√cakṣ (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (आज्ञार्थ) प्रथमपुरुष एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम् — ‘let (him) declare/tell’

Speaker

Māṇḍavya

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sage Māṇḍavya, composed and austere, accepts the offered boon but raises his hand slightly in a gesture of inquiry, requesting Dharma-rāja’s decisive judgment; devas listen attentively.

Characters & Entities

• Māṇḍavya
• Suraśreṣṭhas (Devas)
• Dharmarāja (Yama)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even after receiving divine favor, a seeker prioritizes moral clarity—requesting dharmic judgment and understanding over mere benefit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse begins Adhyāya 136 within the Tīrthamāhātmya flow, but does not name a particular tīrtha in the line itself.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a dialogic transition into a teaching on dharma and karmic adjudication.