Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

माहात्म्यश्रवणं तस्मादौर्वोपि मुनिरब्रवीत् । तदहं श्रोतुमिच्छामि तीर्थस्यास्य गुणान्मुने

Transliteration

māhātmyaśravaṇaṃ tasmādaurvopi munirabravīt | tadahaṃ śrotumicchāmi tīrthasyāsya guṇānmune

Translation

C’est pourquoi même le sage Aurva parla de l’écoute de la grandeur (māhātmya) d’un tīrtha. Aussi désiré-je entendre, ô muni, les vertus de ce lieu sacré.

Word by Word

• māhātmya-śravaṇam: hearing of the greatness (māhātmya)
• māhātmya-śravaṇam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māhātmya (प्रातिपदिक) + śravaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (माहात्म्यस्य श्रवणम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• tasmāt: therefore / from that
• tasmāt: Apadana (Cause/Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• aurvaḥ: Aurva (sage)
• aurvaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aurva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ऋषिनाम

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle)

• muniḥ: the sage
• muniḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• abravīt: said, spoke
• abravīt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √brū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• tat: that (account)
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (अस्मद्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• śrotum: to hear
• śrotum: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (धातु) + śrotum (तुमुन्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: तुमुनन्त (infinitive), श्रवणार्थे (to hear)

• icchāmi: I wish, desire
• icchāmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √iṣ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• tīrthasya: of the tīrtha
• tīrthasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• asya: of this
• asya: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; सर्वनाम-विशेषण (of this)

• guṇān: qualities, virtues
• guṇān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: guṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन

• mune: O sage
• mune: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

Speaker

Phālguna (Arjuna)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A respectful inquirer sits near a sage, hands folded, requesting the virtues of the tīrtha; palm-leaf manuscripts and a water-pot suggest a hermitage setting near sacred waters.

Characters & Entities

• Aurva
• Phālguna (Arjuna)
• Tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Hearing the māhātmya of a holy place is itself a dharmic act and a gateway to deeper faith and practice.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The tīrtha remains unnamed in this verse; the request is to narrate its qualities.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śravaṇa (devout listening) of tīrtha-māhātmya is recommended as a meritorious practice.