Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

मार्कण्डेय उवाच । सा तदा ब्रह्मणा चोक्ता धात्रा लोकस्य भारत । ब्रह्मलोकाद्गता पुण्यां नर्मदां लोकपावनीम्

Transliteration

mārkaṇḍeya uvāca | sā tadā brahmaṇā coktā dhātrā lokasya bhārata | brahmalokādgatā puṇyāṃ narmadāṃ lokapāvanīm

Translation

Mārkaṇḍeya dit : Alors, instruite par Brahmā, l’Ordonnateur des mondes, ô Bhārata, elle descendit de Brahmaloka vers la sainte Narmadā, purificatrice des mondes.

Word by Word

• mārkaṇḍeyaḥ: Mārkaṇḍeya
• mārkaṇḍeyaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mārkaṇḍeya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु) → uvāca
• Form: लिट्-लकार; परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक

• brahmaṇā: by Brahmā
• brahmaṇā: Karana (Agent in passive/कर्ता-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया; एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक

• uktā: was told/commanded
• uktā: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vac (धातु) → ukta (क्त कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; सा-विशेषण; कर्मणि (spoken/commanded)

• dhātrā: by the Creator
• dhātrā: Karana (Agent in passive/कर्ता-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhātṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया; एकवचन; ब्रह्मणा इति समनार्थक (appositional: by the Creator)

• lokasya: of the world
• lokasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी; एकवचन

• bhārata: O Bhārata
• bhārata: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhārata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; एकवचन

• brahmalokāt: from Brahmaloka
• brahmalokāt: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahma-loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; पञ्चमी; एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (ब्रह्मणः लोकः)

• gatā: went
• gatā: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gam (धातु) → gata (क्त कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; सा-विशेषण

• puṇyām: holy
• puṇyām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; नर्मदाम्-विशेषण

• narmadām: Narmadā (river)
• narmadām: Karma (Goal/object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: narmadā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन

• lokapāvanīm: purifier of the worlds
• lokapāvanīm: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: loka+pāvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (लोकस्य पावनी) ; नर्मदाम्-विशेषण

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā)

Type: sangam

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira (addressed as Bhārata)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Mārkaṇḍeya narrates: by Brahmā’s instruction, she descended from Brahmaloka and reached the holy Narmadā, purifier of worlds.

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Brahmā
• Brahmaloka
• Narmadā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A tīrtha’s sanctity is rooted in divine ordinance: holy places are portrayed as established through cosmic intention for the purification of beings.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Narmadā River is praised as “lokapāvanī,” within the broader Kapilā-tīrtha narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is stated; the verse provides the sacred origin (nidāna) of the locale and its purifier-status.