Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

शिलास्थितं च यः पश्येत्त्वां विष्णुं प्रतिमागतम् । सुचक्रांकितसर्वांगं न स गच्छेद्यमालयम्

Transliteration

śilāsthitaṃ ca yaḥ paśyettvāṃ viṣṇuṃ pratimāgatam | sucakrāṃkitasarvāṃgaṃ na sa gacchedyamālayam

Translation

Quiconque te contemple—ô Viṣṇu établi dans la pierre, apparu comme icône sacrée, dont tout le corps porte les marques auspicieuses du disque—n’ira pas au séjour de Yama.

Word by Word

• śilā-sthitam: situated in stone
• śilā-sthitam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śilā (प्रातिपदिक) + sthita (कृदन्त; √sthā धातु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (śilāyāṃ sthitaḥ)

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

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; सम्बन्धवाचक सर्वनाम

• paśyet: should see
• paśyet: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु; paśyati)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• tvām: you
• tvām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (सर्वनाम), द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• viṣṇum: Viṣṇu
• viṣṇum: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• pratimā-gatam: come as an image/idol
• pratimā-gatam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pratimā (प्रातिपदिक) + gata (कृदन्त; √gam धातु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (pratimāyāṃ gataḥ = in the form of an image)

• su-cakrāṃkita-sarvāṅgam: whose whole body is marked with an auspicious discus
• su-cakrāṃkita-sarvāṅgam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (अव्यय/उपसर्गवत्) + cakra (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅkita (कृदन्त; √aṅk धातु) + sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (sucakreṇa aṅkitaṃ sarvāṅgaṃ yasya/tam)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय (negation)

• sa: he
• sa: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• gacchet: should go
• gacchet: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• yama-ālayam: the abode of Yama
• yama-ālayam: Karma (Goal/Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yama (प्रातिपदिक) + ālaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (yamasya ālayam)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration within Tīrthamāhātmya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śālagrāma / Viṣṇu-pratimā

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee beholds a stone Viṣṇu icon/Śālagrāma with visible cakra-like markings; behind, a faint silhouette of Yama recedes into darkness, while a protective Viṣṇu radiance expands.

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu
• Sudarśana-cakra (implied)
• Yama

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred vision (darśana) of the Lord, even in humble embodied form, protects and redirects one from fear and bondage.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Śālagrāma tradition connected with Gaṇḍakī is the implied tīrtha background for this promise of protection.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Darśana—reverent beholding of Viṣṇu manifested in stone (Śālagrāma) as a sacred icon.