Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

छंदोगः कीर्तयेत्तत्र यच्चान्यच्छांतिकं भवेत् । गर्भोपनिषदं चैव स्कंदसूक्तं तथापरम्

Transliteration

chaṃdogaḥ kīrtayettatra yaccānyacchāṃtikaṃ bhavet | garbhopaniṣadaṃ caiva skaṃdasūktaṃ tathāparam

Translation

Là, le prêtre Chāndoga doit réciter les chants chāndogya et tout autre rite d’apaisement prescrit ; de même le Garbhopaniṣad et aussi le Skanda-sūkta, ainsi que d’autres hymnes du même ordre.

Word by Word

• छंदोगः: a Chāndoga (Sāmavedic priest)
• छंदोगः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: छन्दोग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• कीर्तयेत्: should recite/proclaim
• कीर्तयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √कीर्त्/कीर्तय् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (locative adverb)

• यत्: whatever/that which
• यत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun)

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• अन्यत्: other/another
• अन्यत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• शान्तिकम्: pacificatory/appeasing (rite/text)
• शान्तिकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शान्तिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• भवेत्: may be/should be
• भवेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• गर्भोपनिषदम्: Garbha Upaniṣad
• गर्भोपनिषदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गर्भ (प्रातिपदिक) + उपनिषद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘गर्भविषया उपनिषद्’

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• एव: also/indeed
• एव: Modifier (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (emphasis/particle)

• स्कंदसूक्तम्: Skanda-sūkta (hymn to Skanda)
• स्कंदसूक्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्कन्द (प्रातिपदिक) + सूक्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘स्कन्दस्य सूक्तम्’

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Modifier (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (adverb)

• अपरम्: another/additional
• अपरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अपर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

Speaker

Unspecified (narrative instruction within Tīrthamāhātmya; likely a senior narrator addressing a listener)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A Chāndoga priest leads melodic chanting; beside him, another reciter reads an Upaniṣadic text; a separate chanter offers Skanda-sūkta. The patron sits facing east, with ritual vessels (kalaśa, darbha, ācamana-pātra) arranged neatly, conveying a layered soundscape of śruti and stotra.

Characters & Entities

• Chāndoga
• Garbhopaniṣad
• Skanda-sūkta
• Skanda

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purification at a tīrtha is supported by śānti (pacificatory) recitations—scriptural sound and devotion are treated as instruments of inner and outer cleansing.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is situated within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya (Adhyāya 201), describing rites connected to a local tīrtha context in the Nāgara cycle (the immediate snippet does not name the site).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Recitation by a Chāndoga priest of śānti materials, explicitly including the Garbhopaniṣad and the Skanda-sūkta.