Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

। सूत उवाच । तत्रैवास्ति द्विजश्रेष्ठाः सुपुण्यं पुष्करत्रयम् । यत्र पूर्वं तपस्तप्तमानर्ताधिपभूभुजा

Transliteration

| sūta uvāca | tatraivāsti dvijaśreṣṭhāḥ supuṇyaṃ puṣkaratrayam | yatra pūrvaṃ tapastaptamānartādhipabhūbhujā

Translation

Dijo Sūta: Oh, los mejores entre los dos veces nacidos, allí mismo existe la tríada de estanques de Puṣkara, sumamente meritoria, donde antaño el rey de Ānarta practicó austeridades (tapas).

Word by Word

• सूतः: Sūta
• सूतः: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (masculine nominative singular)

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/परफेक्ट), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन (perfect, 3rd person singular)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशार्थे (indeclinable adverb of place)

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक-निपात (emphatic particle)

• अस्ति: there is
• अस्ति: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन (present, 3rd person singular)

• द्विजश्रेष्ठाः: O best of twice-born
• द्विजश्रेष्ठाः: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, बहुवचन (masculine vocative plural)

• सुपुण्यम्: very meritorious
• सुपुण्यम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु-पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• पुष्करत्रयम्: the triad of Puṣkaras (three lakes)
• पुष्करत्रयम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुष्कर + त्रय (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter nom/acc sg)

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्ध/देशार्थे (relative adverb 'where')

• पूर्वम्: formerly
• पूर्वम्: Adhikarana (Temporal/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पूर्वम् (अव्यय/नपुंसक-रूप)
• Form: अव्यय; कालार्थे (adverb of time 'formerly')

• तपः: austerity
• तपः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter accusative singular)

• तप्तम्: was performed
• तप्तम्: Kriya (Predicate-part/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तप् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि (performed/undertaken)

• आनर्ताधिपभूभुजा: by the king (earth-ruler) of Ānarta
• आनर्ताधिपभूभुजा: Karana (Agent-instrumental/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आनर्त-अधिप-भूभुज् (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन (masculine instrumental singular); कर्तृकरणे (agent in passive)

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Puṣkara-traya

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Dvija-śreṣṭhāḥ

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Three adjacent sacred pools with ghats; a remembered scene of an Ānarta king performing austerities on the bank, surrounded by sages and forest stillness.

Characters & Entities

• Sūta
• Puṣkara-traya
• Ānarta (region)
• Ānartādhipa (king of Ānarta)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A place becomes supremely meritorious through tapas (austerity) and thus turns into a powerful tīrtha for future seekers.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Puṣkara-traya—three sacred Puṣkara pools located in the same region being described in this Tīrthamāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription yet; the verse introduces the site and its sanctity rooted in past austerities.