Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

बहवस्तं न जानन्ति कामरागसमन्विताः । नर्मदाया ह्रदं पुण्यं सर्वपातकनाशनम्

Transliteration

bahavastaṃ na jānanti kāmarāgasamanvitāḥ | narmadāyā hradaṃ puṇyaṃ sarvapātakanāśanam

Translation

Beaucoup, entraînés par le désir et l’attachement, ne le connaissent pas. Ce lac sacré de la Narmadā est saint, détruisant toute faute.

Word by Word

• बहवः: many (people)
• बहवः: कर्ता (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बहु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• तम्: that (it)
• तम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• न: not
• न: सम्बन्ध (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-निपात (negation particle)

• जानन्ति: know
• जानन्ति: क्रिया (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन

• कामरागसमन्विताः: endowed with desire and passion
• कामरागसमन्विताः: कर्तृ-विशेषण (Qualifier of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: काम + राग + समन्वित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (समाहार/सम्बन्ध): ‘कामेन रागेण च समन्विताः’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (बहवः)

• नर्मदायाः: of Narmadā
• नर्मदायाः: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• ह्रदम्: lake
• ह्रदम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ह्रद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• पुण्यम्: holy; meritorious
• पुण्यम्: कर्म-विशेषण (Qualifier of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (ह्रदस्य)

• सर्वपातकनाशनम्: destroyer of all sins
• सर्वपातकनाशनम्: कर्म-विशेषण (Qualifier of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व + पातक + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास: ‘सर्वेषां पातकानां नाशनम्’; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (ह्रदस्य)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya (contextual, Reva Khaṇḍa narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Narmadā-hrada (contextually Nandā-hrada)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two groups on the Narmadā bank: one distracted by pleasures and commerce, ignoring the quiet sacred lake; another group of simple pilgrims enters the hrada with folded hands; the water is depicted as luminous, washing away dark stains symbolizing sins.

Characters & Entities

• Narmadā
• Hrada (sacred lake)
• Nandā-hrada (implied by context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly desire and attachment veil knowledge of truly purifying sacred places.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A sacred hrada (lake) of the Narmadā—understood in context as Nandā-hrada.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse implies the purificatory power of bathing (snāna) in the sacred lake.