Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 15

Devanagari script

कश्चिद्विप्रः समाधाय वैष्णवीं प्रतिमां पुरः । तपस्तेपे महाभाग क्षेत्रे वै हाटकेश्वरे

Transliteration

kaścidvipraḥ samādhāya vaiṣṇavīṃ pratimāṃ puraḥ | tapastepe mahābhāga kṣetre vai hāṭakeśvare

Translation

« Un certain brāhmane, ayant dûment placé devant lui une image vaiṣṇava, accomplit des austérités, ô noble, dans le saint kṣetra de Hāṭakeśvara. »

Word by Word

• kaścit: a certain
• kaścit: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaścid (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन — अनिश्चितवाचक सर्वनाम

• vipraḥ: brahmin
• vipraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• samādhāya: having set up
• samādhāya: Kriya (Gerundial action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-√dhā (धातु) + ल्यप् (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (ल्यप्) अव्ययकृदन्त — ‘समाधाय’ = having placed/established

• vaiṣṇavīm: Vaishnava (of Vishnu)
• vaiṣṇavīm: Karma (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vaiṣṇavī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन — विशेषण ‘प्रतिमाम्’

• pratimām: image/idol
• pratimām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pratimā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• puraḥ: in front
• puraḥ: Adhikarana (Place/देशाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: puras (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक) — in front

• tapas: austerity
• tapas: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• tepe: performed (austerity)
• tepe: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √tap (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (आत्मनेपद), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — ‘तेपे’ = he performed austerity

• mahā-bhāga: O greatly fortunate one
• mahā-bhāga: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास, पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन

• kṣetre: in the sacred place/field
• kṣetre: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निश्चयार्थक) — indeed

• hāṭakeśvare: at Hāṭakeśvara
• hāṭakeśvare: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hāṭaka (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (हाटकस्य ईश्वरः), पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन — स्थाननाम

Speaker

Dānavas’ messengers reporting to Vṛka (inferred from immediate context of vṛkāyocuḥ)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: ‘O noble one’ (addressed interlocutor within the māhātmya frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A solitary brāhmaṇa-ascetic sits in austerity before a small Vaiṣṇava icon placed on a clean altar in the sacred precinct of Hāṭakeśvara; the atmosphere is charged, quiet, and luminous.

Characters & Entities

• Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra
• vipra (brāhmaṇa)
• vaiṣṇavī pratimā
• tapas
• Vṛka (contextual)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A holy kṣetra magnifies sincere tapas and devotion; installing and worshiping a divine image becomes a focused doorway to grace.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra is explicitly named and serves as the sacred setting being celebrated.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Placing a Vaiṣṇava pratimā in front (puraḥ) and undertaking tapas in the kṣetra is described as the devotional discipline.