Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 44

Devanagari script

नाल्पपुण्यैरुपास्येत त्वद्रूपं महदद्भुतम् । मया च ब्रह्मणा चैवमदृष्टपदशेखरः

Transliteration

nālpapuṇyairupāsyeta tvadrūpaṃ mahadadbhutam | mayā ca brahmaṇā caivamadṛṣṭapadaśekharaḥ

Translation

Ta forme vaste et merveilleuse ne peut être adorée par ceux dont le mérite est faible. Même moi—et Brahmā lui-même—n’avons pas contemplé le sommet suprême de Ton état transcendant.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Discourse/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• alpa-puṇyaiḥ: by those of little merit
• alpa-puṇyaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: alpa (प्रातिपदिक) + puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; कर्मधारय-समासः (अल्पं पुण्यं येषां तैः)

• upāsyeta: should be worshipped
• upāsyeta: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: upa-√ās (आस् धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; उपास्येत = ‘should be worshipped/served’

• tvat-rūpam: your form
• tvat-rūpam: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (तव रूपम्)

• mahat: great
• mahat: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (रूपम्)

• adbhutam: wonderful
• adbhutam: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: adbhuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (रूपम्)

• mayā: by me
• mayā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, तृतीया, एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• brahmaṇā: by Brahmā
• brahmaṇā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• evam: thus
• evam: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: thus)

• adṛṣṭa-pada-śekharaḥ: (I) who had not seen/attained the highest state
• adṛṣṭa-pada-śekharaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-dṛṣṭa (√dṛś धातु; क्त-प्रत्यय, कृदन्त) + pada (प्रातिपदिक) + śekhara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (अदृष्टं पदशेखरं यस्य/येन) — ‘whose/for whom the summit of the state was not seen/attained’

Speaker

Viṣṇu (continuing the stuti; mentions Brahmā in third person)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Aruṇācala

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Unspecified

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee-speaker confesses that Aruṇācala’s vast, wondrous form and its supreme summit cannot be fully seen; Brahmā stands nearby in humility, both gazing upward at the luminous mountain.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Viṣṇu
• Brahmā
• Aruṇācala

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine realization requires spiritual merit and humility; even great gods acknowledge the transcendence of Śiva.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Aruṇācala, described as Śiva’s vast, wondrous, and transcendent manifestation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

An implied teaching: accumulate puṇya and approach worship with humility; no specific rite is listed.