Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

अथ मंकणकोनाम महर्षिः संशितव्रतः । क्षेत्रे तत्र समायातो विषविद्याविचक्षणः

Transliteration

atha maṃkaṇakonāma maharṣiḥ saṃśitavrataḥ | kṣetre tatra samāyāto viṣavidyāvicakṣaṇaḥ

Translation

Alors arriva en ce lieu sacré un grand ṛṣi nommé Maṃkaṇaka, ferme dans ses vœux et expert dans la science des poisons.

Word by Word

• अथ: then/now
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रम/आरम्भसूचक (sequence/now-then particle)

• मंकणकः: Maṃkaṇaka (name of a sage)
• मंकणकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मंकणक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन

• नाम: by name
• नाम: Sambandha (Apposition marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नाम (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; नामार्थक-निपात (particle meaning ‘by name’)

• महर्षिः: great sage
• महर्षिः: Karta (Apposition to subject/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महर्षि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन

• संशितव्रतः: of firm/strict vows
• संशितव्रतः: Karta (Qualifier of subject/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संशित-व्रत (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्ताधारित विशेषण)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying maharṣiḥ)

• क्षेत्रे: in the sacred place/field
• क्षेत्रे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th/Locative); एकवचन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location adjunct/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb)

• समायातः: arrived/came
• समायातः: Karta (Predicate of subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-आ-या (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृत् (past participle, क्त); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; कर्तरि प्रयोग (used predicatively: ‘having come/arrived’)

• विषविद्याविचक्षणः: skilled in the science of poisons
• विषविद्याविचक्षणः: Karta (Qualifier of subject/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विष-विद्या-विचक्षण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying maharṣiḥ); समासः: विषविद्या (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/‘poison-knowledge’) + विचक्षण (expert)

Speaker

Sūta (narration continues)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A vow-bound rishi, austere and radiant, arrives at a serpent-guarded sacred precinct—trees and water nearby, nāgas hinted in the landscape.

Characters & Entities

• Maṃkaṇaka (Maharṣi)
• Citraśilā Kṣetra (implied)
• Viṣavidyā (poison-lore)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holy places attract disciplined seekers; spiritual geography becomes a meeting ground for tapas and sacred power.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The same kṣetra of Citraśilā/Mahāhrada where Sarasvatī was established.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual instruction; it introduces a sage whose expertise (viṣavidyā) becomes relevant to the tīrtha narrative.