Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

नदीवेगोपमं दृष्ट्वा जीवितंसर्वदेहिनाम् । तन्मे वद महाभाग यत्किंचिद् व्रतमुत्तमम्

Transliteration

nadīvegopamaṃ dṛṣṭvā jīvitaṃsarvadehinām | tanme vada mahābhāga yatkiṃcid vratamuttamam

Translation

Voyant que la vie de tous les êtres incarnés ressemble au courant impétueux d’un fleuve, dis-moi, ô très fortuné, quelque vœu suprême, la plus haute observance qui soit.

Word by Word

• nadī-vega-upamam: like a river’s swift current
• nadī-vega-upamam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक) + vega (प्रातिपदिक) + upama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (नद्याः वेगः; तेन उपमम्) — ‘comparable to the river’s current’ (jīvitam इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Purvakala (पूर्वकाल-क्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त/Absolutive), अव्यय — ‘having seen’

• jīvitam: life
• jīvitam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jīvita (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘life’

• sarva-dehinām: of all embodied beings
• sarva-dehinām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + dehin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः (सर्वेषां देहिनाम्) — ‘of all embodied beings’

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘that’ (व्रतम् इत्यस्य विशेषणवत्/प्रत्यादेशः)

• me: to me
• me: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: चतुर्थी (4th/चतुर्थी), एकवचन — ‘to me/for me’

• vada: tell
• vada: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vad (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन — ‘tell/say’

• mahā-bhāga: O fortunate one
• mahā-bhāga: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महान् भागः यस्य) — ‘O greatly fortunate one’

• yat: whatever
• yat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘which/whatever’ (किंचिद् इत्यनेन सह)

• kiṃcit: any (some)
• kiṃcit: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; अनिश्चितार्थक (indefinite) — ‘some/any’

• vratam: vow, observance
• vratam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘vow/observance’

• uttamam: supreme
• uttamam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘best/supreme’ (vratam इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)

Speaker

Lakṣmī (continuing)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: the sage (mahābhāga/munīśvara)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Lakṣmī stands or sits near a fast-flowing river, watching the torrent; she turns to the sage with earnestness, asking for the highest vow—time and life symbolized by rushing water.

Characters & Entities

• Lakṣmī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Awareness of life’s fleeting nature should lead to deliberate dharmic practice—choosing vows that elevate the soul.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not specified in this verse; it functions as an inquiry leading into a vrata teaching within the tīrtha-māhātmya narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A request is made for an ‘uttama vrata’; details are given in subsequent verses.