Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

यतश्चेन्द्रद्युम्नराज्ञा ताप्यमाना वसुंधरा । सर्वतीर्थद्रवीभूता महीनामाभवन्नदी

Transliteration

yataścendradyumnarājñā tāpyamānā vasuṃdharā | sarvatīrthadravībhūtā mahīnāmābhavannadī

Translation

« Car lorsque la Terre fut brûlée par le roi Indradyumna, elle se fondit en l’essence de tous les tīrtha et devint un fleuve nommé Mahī. »

Word by Word

• यतः: because
• यतः: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यतः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; हेत्वर्थक (because)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक अव्यय (conjunction: and)

• इन्द्रद्युम्न-राज्ञा: by King Indradyumna
• इन्द्रद्युम्न-राज्ञा: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इन्द्रद्युम्न + राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (इन्द्रद्युम्नस्य राजा)

• ताप्यमाना: being tormented
• ताप्यमाना: Karma (Patient/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तप् (धातु) + यमान (कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकर्मणि कृदन्त (present passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मणि—'being heated/tormented'

• वसुंधरा: the earth
• वसुंधरा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुंधरा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सर्वतीर्थ-द्रवीभूता: having become the essence/flow of all tīrthas
• सर्वतीर्थ-द्रवीभूता: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व + तीर्थ + द्रवीभूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle: द्रवीभूत), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुष (सर्वाणि तीर्थानि इव द्रवीभूता/तीर्थद्रवः)

• मही-नाम: (with the) name 'Mahī'
• मही-नाम: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मही + नामन् (प्रातिपदिक: नाम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (मही-नाम = 'named Mahī')

• अभवत्: became
• अभवत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• नदी: a river
• नदी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नदी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Tīrtharāja (Mahīsāgara-saṅgama personified)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahī (river)

Type: river

Visual Art Cues

Scene: King Indradyumna’s tapas/heat scorches the Earth; the ground glows and liquefies into a shining stream that becomes the Mahī river, carrying symbols of many tīrthas within it.

Characters & Entities

• Indradyumna
• Vasundharā (Earth)
• Mahī (river)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage geography is grounded in cosmic myth: rivers and confluences are portrayed as embodiments of accumulated sacred merit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Mahī river and, by implication, her ocean-confluence (Mahīsāgara-saṅgama).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse provides an origin narrative supporting the tīrtha’s sanctity.