Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

श्रीमार्कण्डेय उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्महीपालं सौवर्णशिलमुत्तमम् । प्रख्यातमुत्तरे कूले सर्वपापक्षयंकरम्

Transliteration

śrīmārkaṇḍeya uvāca | tato gacchenmahīpālaṃ sauvarṇaśilamuttamam | prakhyātamuttare kūle sarvapāpakṣayaṃkaram

Translation

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya dit : Alors, ô roi, qu’on se rende à l’excellente Sauvarṇaśilā, renommée sur la rive septentrionale, qui détruit tous les péchés.

Word by Word

• śrīmārkaṇḍeyaḥ: the venerable Mārkaṇḍeya
• śrīmārkaṇḍeyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrī (उपपद/प्रातिपदिक) + mārkaṇḍeya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (śrīmān mārkaṇḍeyaḥ)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• tataḥ: then/from there
• tataḥ: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्यय-प्रयोग (adverb)

• gacchet: one should go
• gacchet: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• mahīpālam: to the king (protector of earth)
• mahīpālam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahīpāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• sauvarṇaśilam: (to) Sauvarṇaśilā (Golden Rock)
• sauvarṇaśilam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sauvarṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + śilā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष-प्रायः (sauvarṇī śilā)

• uttamam: excellent
• uttamam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• prakhyātam: well-known
• prakhyātam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra√khyā (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• uttare: on the northern
• uttare: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; विशेषण

• kūle: bank/shore
• kūle: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kūla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• sarvapāpakṣayaṃkaram: destroying all sins
• sarvapāpakṣayaṃkaram: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣayaṃkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sauvarṇaśilā / Suvarṇaśilā

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (mahīpāla)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Mārkaṇḍeya instructs the king to proceed to Sauvarṇaśilā, a luminous sacred rock/spot on the northern bank of the Revā; the river glints as if golden.

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Sauvarṇaśilā
• Revā (Narmadā)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is presented as a dhārmic progression: moving from one sanctified site to another for purification and upliftment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Sauvarṇaśilā, a famed tīrtha on the northern bank within the Revā Khaṇḍa’s sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A directive to go (gacchet) to the tīrtha—an explicit pilgrimage instruction; specific rites are not detailed in this verse.