Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 90

Devanagari script

शालग्रामाह्वयं तीर्थं सोमनाथमनुत्तमम् । तथैवोदीर्णवाराहं तीर्थं चन्द्रप्रभासकम्

Transliteration

śālagrāmāhvayaṃ tīrthaṃ somanāthamanuttamam | tathaivodīrṇavārāhaṃ tīrthaṃ candraprabhāsakam

Translation

Il y a le gué sacré nommé Śālagrāma, et l’incomparable sanctuaire de Somanātha ; de même le lieu saint appelé Udīrṇa-vārāha, et le tīrtha connu sous le nom de Candraprabhāsaka.

Word by Word

• शालग्रामाह्वयम्: called ‘Śālagrāma’
• शालग्रामाह्वयम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शालग्राम (प्रातिपदिक) + आह्वय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (शालग्राम-आह्वयम् = शालग्राम-नामकं) विशेषणम् (तीर्थम्)

• तीर्थम्: sacred ford/place
• तीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• सोमनाथम्: Somanātha
• सोमनाथम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सोम (प्रातिपदिक) + नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सोमस्य नाथः)

• अनुत्तमम्: unsurpassed, excellent
• अनुत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनुत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (सोमनाथम्/तीर्थम्)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/अनुक्रमसूचक (likewise)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (indeed)

• उदीर्णवाराहम्: (the tīrtha) of the exalted Boar (Varāha)
• उदीर्णवाराहम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उदीर्ण (कृदन्त; उद्-ऋ धातोः क्त) + वाराह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (उदीर्णः वाराहः यस्मिन्/यत्) विशेषणम् (तीर्थम्)

• तीर्थम्: sacred ford/place
• तीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• चन्द्रप्रभासकम्: moon-radiant; Candraprabhāsaka
• चन्द्रप्रभासकम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रभासक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (चन्द्रस्य प्रभासकं = चन्द्रप्रभम्) विशेषणम् (तीर्थम्)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced for Āvantya/Revā narrative frame)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śālagrāma; Somanātha; Udīrṇa-vārāha; Candraprabhāsaka

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Four stations: a black śālagrāma stone on a pedestal with tulasī; a radiant Śiva liṅga titled Somanātha with crescent-moon motif; a Varāha icon emerging (udīrṇa) from waters/earth; a serene shrine bathed in cool moonlight (Candraprabhāsaka) beside the river.

Characters & Entities

• Śālagrāma
• Somanātha
• Udīrṇa-vārāha
• Candraprabhāsaka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Remembering and visiting celebrated tīrthas is presented as a dharmic path that awakens devotion and accrues puṇya through sacred geography.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Śālagrāma-tīrtha, Somanātha, Udīrṇa-vārāha-tīrtha, and Candraprabhāsaka are named as eminent pilgrimage sites.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is stated in this verse; it functions as a tīrtha-list (saṅkīrtana) implying pilgrimage, darśana, and customary snāna.