Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

पुंडरीकाक्ष उक्तस्तु ह्युपेंद्रश्च ततः परम् । हरिस्त्रयोविंशतिमः कृष्णश्चांत्य उदाहृतः

Transliteration

puṃḍarīkākṣa uktastu hyupeṃdraśca tataḥ param | haristrayoviṃśatimaḥ kṛṣṇaścāṃtya udāhṛtaḥ

Translation

Puṇḍarīkākṣa est mentionné, puis vient Upendra. Hari est le vingt-troisième, et Kṛṣṇa est proclamé comme le dernier.

Word by Word

• puṃḍarīkākṣaḥ: Puṇḍarīkākṣa (lotus-eyed one)
• puṃḍarīkākṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṃḍarīkākṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—puṃḍarīka + akṣa (यस्य अक्षिणी पुंडरीकसदृशे)

• uktaḥ: (is) said / mentioned
• uktaḥ: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vac (धातु) + kta (कृत्प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; past passive participle

• tu: but / indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), विरोध/अन्वयार्थे

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• upendraḥ: Upendra
• upendraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: upendra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—upa + indra (इन्द्रस्य उपेन्द्रः/इन्द्रसदृशः)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• tataḥ: thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (प्रातिपदिक/अव्यय-प्रयोग)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), अपादानार्थ/क्रमे—‘ततः’ = thereafter/from that

• param: next / further
• param: Adhikaraṇa (Temporal/Sequential)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययप्रयोग (adverbial accusative), ‘परम्’ = further/next

• hariḥ: Hari
• hariḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• trayoviṃśatimaḥ: the twenty-third
• trayoviṃśatimaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: trayo-viṃśati (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + -ma (तद्धित)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; क्रमवाचक (ordinal) ‘23rd’; तत्पुरुष-समास (संख्यासमास)

• kṛṣṇaḥ: Kṛṣṇa
• kṛṣṇaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• antyaḥ: the last
• antyaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: antya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• udāhṛtaḥ: is declared / is stated
• udāhṛtaḥ: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ā-hṛ (धातु) + ud- (उपसर्ग) + kta (कृत्प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘उदाहृत’ = declared/mentioned

Speaker

Brahmā (in Brahma–Nārada dialogue; implied by section context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A serene closing tableau: Puṇḍarīkākṣa with lotus eyes and lotus in hand; Upendra as youthful divine; Hari as radiant four-armed Viṣṇu; Kṛṣṇa as dark-hued flute-bearer, devotees offering tulasī and butter-sweets.

Characters & Entities

• Puṇḍarīkākṣa
• Upendra
• Hari
• Kṛṣṇa
• Viṣṇu

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The many names of Viṣṇu culminate in intimate devotion, where the supreme is approached as Kṛṣṇa—the final proclaimed form in this sequence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The passage sits within the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra-māhātmya framework, tied to the sanctity of Śāligrāma in sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Recitation/recognition of the enumerated forms functions as a liturgical framework for regular worship.