Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

एवं तीर्थस्य माहात्म्यं विज्ञाय भगवानृषिः । लिंगं संस्थापयामास देवदेवस्य शूलिनः

Transliteration

evaṃ tīrthasya māhātmyaṃ vijñāya bhagavānṛṣiḥ | liṃgaṃ saṃsthāpayāmāsa devadevasya śūlinaḥ

Translation

Ainsi, ayant compris la grandeur du tīrtha, le vénérable ṛṣi établit un liṅga de Śūlin—Śiva, le Seigneur des seigneurs.

Word by Word

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of manner: 'thus')

• तीर्थस्य: of the sacred ford/pilgrimage place
• तीर्थस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive); एकवचन

• माहात्म्यम्: greatness, glory
• माहात्म्यम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माहात्म्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन

• विज्ञाय: having understood/known
• विज्ञाय: Kriyā (Pūrvakāla-kriyā)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund/absolutive); पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (having known)

• भगवान्: venerable, blessed
• भगवान्: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative); एकवचन; विशेषण

• ऋषिः: sage
• ऋषिः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋषि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative); एकवचन

• लिङ्गम्: (Śiva-)liṅga
• लिङ्गम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन

• संस्थापयामास: established, set up
• संस्थापयामास: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + स्थापय् (धातु; स्थाप् caus.)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect); प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person); एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• देवदेवस्य: of the god of gods
• देवदेवस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव + देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive); एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (देवानां देवः)

• शूलिनः: of the trident-bearer (Śiva)
• शूलिनः: Sambandha (Genitive apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शूलिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive); एकवचन

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Viśvāmitreśvara-tīrtha (implied by subsequent verse)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A venerable ṛṣi, having grasped the tīrtha’s greatness, installs a Śiva-liṅga; attendants and subtle devas witness; the landscape suggests a Gujarat tīrtha with calm waters and sacred trees.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Śūlin
• liṅga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Recognizing a place’s sanctity should culminate in devotion and dharmic institution—here, by establishing Śiva’s liṅga for ongoing worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The tīrtha in Nāgarakhaṇḍa Adhyāya 44 where a Śaiva liṅga is established, later known through the Viśvāmitreśvara tradition (see following verses).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Liṅga-saṃsthāpana (installation/establishment of a Śiva-liṅga) as an act arising from realizing the tīrtha’s greatness.