Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

अथ ते ब्राह्मणा ज्ञात्वा सुशीलेन वसुन्धरा । देवतायतनार्थाय दत्ता तस्मै तपस्विने

Transliteration

atha te brāhmaṇā jñātvā suśīlena vasundharā | devatāyatanārthāya dattā tasmai tapasvine

Translation

Alors ces brāhmaṇas, apprenant que Suśīla avait accordé la terre à cet ascète afin d’y bâtir un sanctuaire pour la Divinité, en furent remués au fond d’eux-mêmes.

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• अथ: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Discourse particle/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अनन्तरार्थक-अव्यय (then/now)

• ते: those
• ते: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural) — विशेषण (demonstrative)

• ब्राह्मणाः: Brahmins
• ब्राह्मणाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ज्ञात्वा: having known
• ज्ञात्वा: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial participle/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय-भावकृदन्त (Gerund/Absolutive) — 'having known/realized'

• सुशीलेन: by/through Suśīla
• सुशीलेन: Sahakari/Karana (Instrument/Agent-instrumental)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुशील (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन (Singular)

• वसुन्धरा: the earth/land
• वसुन्धरा: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुन्धरा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• देवतायतनार्थाय: for the purpose of a deity’s shrine
• देवतायतनार्थाय: Sampradana (Purpose/Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता (प्रातिपदिक) + आयतन (प्रातिपदिक) + अर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः + तत्पुरुषः — 'देवतायाः आयतनस्य अर्थाय' (purpose)

• दत्ता: was given
• दत्ता: Kriya (Predicate participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त (Past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — कर्मणि प्रयोगे 'was given'

• तस्मै: to him
• तस्मै: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative), एकवचन (Singular)

• तपस्विने: to the ascetic
• तपस्विने: Sampradana (Recipient apposition/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस्विन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual, Nāgara-khaṇḍa māhātmya narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A group of brāhmaṇas, hearing of Suśīla’s land-grant to the ascetic for a deity’s shrine, gather in agitation—hands raised, brows furrowed—near the marked boundary of the donated land.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas
• Suśīla
• Tapasvin (ascetic)
• Devata-āyatana (temple)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Land offered for establishing a deity’s shrine is presented as a dhārmic act with lasting religious significance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits within the Nāgara-khaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya framework, but this single shloka does not name a specific tīrtha explicitly.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed; it references dāna (granting land) intended for devatāyatana-nirmāṇa (temple construction).