Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 44

Devanagari script

सूच्या सूत्रं यथा वस्त्रं संचारयति सूचिका । तद्वत्संसारसूत्रं च वांछयात्मा नयत्यसौ

Transliteration

sūcyā sūtraṃ yathā vastraṃ saṃcārayati sūcikā | tadvatsaṃsārasūtraṃ ca vāṃchayātmā nayatyasau

Translation

Así como la aguja hace pasar el hilo por la tela, del mismo modo el Ser, impulsado por el anhelo, arrastra consigo el hilo del saṃsāra, el devenir repetido.

Word by Word

• सूच्या: with a needle
• सूच्या: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूची (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण

• सूत्रम्: thread
• सूत्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• यथा: as, just as
• यथा: Sambandha/Avyaya (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमावाचक (comparative particle)

• वस्त्रम्: cloth
• वस्त्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वस्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• संचारयति: causes to pass through, threads
• संचारयति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + चर् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; णिच् (causative)

• सूचिका: the needle
• सूचिका: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूचिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• तद्वत्: likewise
• तद्वत्: Sambandha/Avyaya (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद्वत् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तुलनावाचक (adverb: similarly)

• संसारसूत्रम्: the thread of worldly existence
• संसारसूत्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संसार (प्रातिपदिक) + सूत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (संसारस्य सूत्रम्)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha/Avyaya (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• वाञ्छया: by desire
• वाञ्छया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाञ्छा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण

• आत्मा: the self
• आत्मा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• नयति: leads, draws
• नयति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नी (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• असौ: that (one)
• असौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असद्/अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; दूरवाचक-सर्वनाम

Speaker

Bharadvāja (contextual continuation)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A symbolic tableau: a needle passes through cloth pulling a long thread labeled saṁsāra; beside it, a contemplative seeker holds scissors/knife of viveka or jñāna to cut the thread, with a tīrtha-ghat in the background.

Characters & Entities

• saṁsāra
• tṛṣṇā/vāñchā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Craving actively ‘threads’ the soul through worldly entanglement; reducing desire loosens bondage and supports liberation-minded dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it provides the inner discipline that makes pilgrimage and tīrtha-sevā spiritually fruitful.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the implied practice is desire-restraint (indriya-nigraha) as a prerequisite for tīrtha merit.