Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

उत्तरवाहिन्याः काश्या कुरुक्षेत्रादि वै तथा । गंगापुरीसमफलं कुण्डेऽत्र मुनिनोदितम्

Transliteration

uttaravāhinyāḥ kāśyā kurukṣetrādi vai tathā | gaṃgāpurīsamaphalaṃ kuṇḍe'tra muninoditam

Translation

Le sage proclame que le mérite de ce kuṇḍa est égal à celui de Kāśī, où le fleuve s’écoule vers le nord, ainsi qu’à celui de Kurukṣetra et des lieux semblables—oui, égal à celui de Gaṅgāpurī.

Word by Word

• उत्तरवाहिन्याः: of the north-flowing (river)
• उत्तरवाहिन्याः: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उत्तरवाहिनी (प्रातिपदिक; उत्तर + वाहिनी)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध (genitive)

• काश्याः: of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• काश्याः: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; सम्बन्ध

• कुरुक्षेत्र: Kurukṣetra
• कुरुक्षेत्र: Sambandha (Compound member)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरुक्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक; कुरु + क्षेत्र)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; समासाङ्ग (compound member)

• आदि: and so on
• आदि: Sambandha/Avyaya (Etc.)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: आदि (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययवत्)
• Form: अव्यय; ‘आदि’ (etc.)—समुच्चयार्थक

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha/Avyaya (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (emphatic particle)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha/Avyaya (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/समुच्चयार्थक (thus/likewise)

• गंगापुरीसमफलम्: having merit equal to Gaṅgāpurī
• गंगापुरीसमफलम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गंगापुरीसमफल (प्रातिपदिक; गंगा + पुरी + सम + फल)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कुण्डेऽत्र (कुण्डस्य) विशेषण; अर्थः ‘गंगापुरी-सदृश-फलद’

• कुण्डे: in/for the pond (kuṇḍa)
• कुण्डे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; अधिकरण

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (here)

• मुनिना: by the sage
• मुनिना: Karana (Agent/कर्ता-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; कर्तृकरण/कर्ता (agent in passive sense)

• उदितम्: declared, stated
• उदितम्: Kriya (Predicative/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उद् + वद्/उद् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; (गंगापुरीसमफलम्) इत्यस्य विधेय/विशेषण; अर्थः ‘उक्तम्/प्रकाशितम्’

Speaker

Unknown (narrative voice quoting/attributing to a Muni)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya Kuṇḍa (Aśvinī-kuṇḍa complex)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sage proclaims the kuṇḍa’s greatness; behind him appear symbolic visions of Uttaravāhinī Kāśī, Kurukṣetra, and Gaṅgāpurī—three sacred landscapes mirrored within the single pool.

Characters & Entities

• Kuṇḍa (Dharmāraṇya)
• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
• Uttaravāhinī Gaṅgā
• Kurukṣetra
• Gaṅgāpurī
• Muni

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic tīrtha-māhātmya teaches that divinely revealed local sites can confer merits equal to famed pan-Indian pilgrimage centers.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A specific kuṇḍa in Dharmāraṇya is praised as bestowing merit equal to Kāśī (Uttaravāhinī), Kurukṣetra, and Gaṅgāpurī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse implies tīrtha-benefit (phala) connected to the kuṇḍa—most directly realized through snāna and pilgrimage observance—though the act is not explicitly stated here.