Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

उमावाक्यान्महेशानध्यातस्तिमिरनाशनः । आगतो गगनाद्भानुर्नर्मदोत्तररोधसि

Transliteration

umāvākyānmaheśānadhyātastimiranāśanaḥ | āgato gaganādbhānurnarmadottararodhasi

Translation

À la suite des paroles d’Umā, Maheśa médita sur la chose. Alors Bhānu, destructeur des ténèbres, descendit du ciel sur la rive septentrionale de la Narmadā.

Word by Word

• umāvākyāt: from Umā’s words
• umāvākyāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: umā + vākya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (उमायाः वाक्यम्) + अपादान (from Uma's words)

• maheśāt: from Maheśa (Śiva)
• maheśāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maheśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (ablative singular: 'from Maheśa')

• andhyātaḥ: having been contemplated/considered
• andhyātaḥ: Sambandha (Qualifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: andhyāta (कृदन्त; √dhyai/andh? here from √dhyai ध्यै with prefix?; used as 'meditated/pondered' or 'ordered'? )
• Form: भूतकृदन्त/कृदन्त-रूप (PPP-like), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying implied agent/event)

• timira: darkness
• timira: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: timira (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-पूर्वपद (in compound)

• nāśanaḥ: destroyer
• nāśanaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासोत्तरपद (agent noun: destroyer)

• āgataḥ: has come
• āgataḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: āgata (कृदन्त; √gam गम्)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past active participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्तृवाचक (having come)

• gaganāt: from the sky
• gaganāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gagana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (ablative: 'from the sky')

• bhānuḥ: the Sun
• bhānuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhānu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• narmadā: Narmadā (river)
• narmadā: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: narmadā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-पूर्वपद (in compound)

• uttara: northern
• uttara: Sambandha (Qualifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, समासपूर्वपद; दिक्शब्द-विशेषण (northern)

• rodhasi: on the bank/shore
• rodhasi: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rodhas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अधिकरण (locative: on the bank)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Narmadottara-roḍha (Sūryāvataraṇa-sthāna in episode)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva meditates after Umā’s prompting; from the sky, the radiant Sun descends to the Narmadā’s northern bank, illuminating the scene and dispelling darkness.

Characters & Entities

• Umā (Pārvatī)
• Maheśa (Śiva)
• Bhānu (Sūrya)
• Narmadā (Revā)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Cosmic powers (like the Sun) respond within dharmic order when guided by divine intent; sacred places become stages for divine resolution.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

The northern bank of the Narmadā (Revā) is foregrounded as the setting for the Prabhāseśa tīrtha narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse establishes the tīrtha-location and divine arrival that underpins later prescriptions.