Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

लिंगानि च महाभाग तत्र मुख्यानि यानि च । यैर्दृष्टैर्लभ्यते श्रेयः सर्वेषां तानि नो वद

Transliteration

liṃgāni ca mahābhāga tatra mukhyāni yāni ca | yairdṛṣṭairlabhyate śreyaḥ sarveṣāṃ tāni no vada

Translation

Et, ô toi le très fortuné, dis-nous aussi quels sont les liṅga principaux qui s’y trouvent ; par leur darśana (vision sacrée), tous obtiennent le bien suprême.

Word by Word

• liṃgāni: liṅgas (emblems)
• liṃgāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन

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

• mahābhāga: O fortunate one
• mahābhāga: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-bhāga (प्रातिपदिक; महत् + भाग)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (8th/vocative), एकवचन

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb: there)

• mukhyāni: principal
• mukhyāni: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mukhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन; liṅgāni इति विशेषण

• yāni: which
• yāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन; सम्बन्धक (which)

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

• yaiḥ: by which
• yaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; साधन/हेतु (by which)

• dṛṣṭaiḥ: seen
• dṛṣṭaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dṛṣṭa (कृदन्त; √dṛś दृश् (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (when seen)

• labhyate: is obtained
• labhyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: labh (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present/वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)

• śreyaḥ: the highest good; merit
• śreyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śreyas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• sarveṣām: of all (people)
• sarveṣām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक; षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• tāni: those
• tāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन

• naḥ: to us; our
• naḥ: Sampradana (Beneficiary/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन; एन्क्लिटिक (enclitic)

• vada: tell
• vada: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vad (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative/आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

Speaker

Ṛṣis (Sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sūta

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A group of dvijas/pilgrims respectfully question the sūta-guide, gesturing toward a sacred landscape dotted with multiple liṅga-shrines; the emphasis is on ‘mukhya-liṅgas’ and the promise of śreyas through darśana.

Characters & Entities

• Liṅga
• Śiva (implied)
• Ṛṣis

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Darśana (reverent seeing) of consecrated liṅgas is taught as a direct means to śreyas—spiritual uplift for all.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The question concerns the principal liṅgas ‘there’—within the same sacred kṣetra being described in this Tīrthamāhātmya (Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra frame).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Darśana of the प्रमुख liṅgas is highlighted as a merit-producing act; the sages request their names/details.