Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

प्रासादं रात्रिनाथस्य सुपुण्यमपि सद्द्विजाः । य एष रात्रिनाथस्य क्षेत्रेऽत्रैव व्यवस्थितः

Transliteration

prāsādaṃ rātrināthasya supuṇyamapi saddvijāḥ | ya eṣa rātrināthasya kṣetre'traiva vyavasthitaḥ

Translation

Oh nobles brāhmanes, este templo de Rātrinātha, de altísimo mérito, está establecido aquí mismo, dentro del campo sagrado (kṣetra) de Rātrinātha.

Word by Word

• prāsādam: palace/temple
• prāsādam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāsāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• rātri-nāthasya: of the lord of the night (Moon)
• rātri-nāthasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rātri (प्रातिपदिक) + nātha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (रात्रेः नाथः)

• su-puṇyam: very meritorious
• su-puṇyam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (सु + पुण्यम् = अत्यन्तं पुण्यम्), विशेषण (प्रासादम्)

• api: even/also
• api: Sambandha-bodhaka (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अपि-अव्यय (particle: also/even)

• sat-dvijāḥ: O good twice-born (brahmins)
• sat-dvijāḥ: Sambodhana/Address (Vocative sense/सम्बोधनार्थ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sat (प्रातिपदिक) + dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (सन्तः द्विजाः)

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्बन्ध-सर्वनाम

• eṣaḥ: this
• eṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; निर्देश-सर्वनाम

• rātri-nāthasya: of the lord of the night
• rātri-nāthasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rātri (प्रातिपदिक) + nātha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• kṣetre: in the sacred field/region
• kṣetre: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place)

• eva: indeed/just
• eva: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• vyavasthitaḥ: is established/situated
• vyavasthitaḥ: Kriyā (Predicative action/state/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-ava-√sthā (धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (स्थितः)

Speaker

Sūta (deduced from Purāṇic dialogue style in Tīrthamāhātmya sections)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Rātrinātha-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Saddvijāḥ (noble brāhmaṇas)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A luminous temple of Rātrinātha within a defined sacred precinct; brāhmaṇas stand in reverence as the narrator points out the prāsāda’s exceptional merit.

Characters & Entities

• Rātrinātha
• Kṣetra (sacred precinct)
• Saddvijāḥ (brāhmaṇas)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A temple established within a sanctified kṣetra becomes a concentrated source of puṇya for devotees and pilgrims.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Rātrinātha-kṣetra within the Hāṭakeśvara sacred region, as described in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific rite is prescribed here; the verse chiefly points to the temple’s established sanctity and merit.