Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

यथा गयाशिरः पुण्यं सुराणां च यथा शिला । यथा च पुष्करं स्थानं मार्कण्डह्रद एव च

Transliteration

yathā gayāśiraḥ puṇyaṃ surāṇāṃ ca yathā śilā | yathā ca puṣkaraṃ sthānaṃ mārkaṇḍahrada eva ca

Translation

De même que Gayāśiras est saint, et de même que la pierre sacrée vénérée par les dieux est sainte, ainsi le sont aussi l’enceinte sacrée de Puṣkara et le lac de Mārkaṇḍa.

Word by Word

• यथा: as
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparative link)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उपमान/प्रकार) = 'as'

• गया-शिरः: Gayāśiras (the head/peak at Gayā)
• गया-शिरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गया (प्रातिपदिक) + शिरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन = Neuter, Nominative singular; तत्पुरुष ('गयायाः शिरः')

• पुण्यम्: holy
• पुण्यम्: Visheshana (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन = Neuter, Nom./Acc. singular; predicate adjective

• सुराणाम्: of the gods
• सुराणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन = Masculine, Genitive plural

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक) = conjunction

• यथा: as
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparative link)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उपमान/प्रकार) = 'as'

• शिला: a stone/rock (sacred stone)
• शिला: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिला (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन = Feminine, Nominative singular

• यथा: as
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparative link)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उपमान/प्रकार) = 'as'

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक) = conjunction

• पुष्करम्: Puṣkara
• पुष्करम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुष्कर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन = Neuter, Nom./Acc. singular

• स्थानम्: place/holy site
• स्थानम्: Samānādhikaraṇa (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्थान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन = Neuter, Nom./Acc. singular; apposition to पुष्करम्

• मार्कण्ड-ह्रदः: Mārkaṇḍa-hrada (Markandeya’s lake)
• मार्कण्ड-ह्रदः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मार्कण्ड (प्रातिपदिक) + ह्रद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन = Masculine, Nominative singular; तत्पुरुष ('मार्कण्डस्य ह्रदः')

• एव: indeed
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अवधारण) = emphatic particle

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक) = conjunction

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gayāśiras; Devārcita-śilā (surāṇāṃ śilā); Puṣkara-sthāna; Mārkaṇḍa-hrada

Type: peak

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A fourfold sacred montage: (1) Gayāśiras as a sanctified hilltop with pilgrims offering piṇḍa; (2) a radiant stone pedestal worshipped by devas (surāḥ) with garlands; (3) Puṣkara’s precinct with Brahmā symbolism and a tīrtha lake; (4) Mārkaṇḍa-hrada with the sage in meditation beside a lotus-filled lake—each scene linked by a continuous halo ribbon indicating equal holiness.

Characters & Entities

• Gayāśiras
• Surāḥ (gods)
• Śilā (sacred stone)
• Puṣkara
• Mārkaṇḍa-hrada

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sanctity extends across diverse forms—stones, lakes, and pilgrimage towns—each becoming a doorway to merit when honored with faith.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Puṣkara and Mārkaṇḍa-hrada, praised alongside famed Gayāśiras and a divine sacred śilā.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it is an identification of holy equivalents among tīrthas.