Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

दश पूर्वान्दशातीतानात्मानं च द्विजोत्तमाः । पुरुषान्स समुद्धृत्य शिवलोके महीयते

Transliteration

daśa pūrvāndaśātītānātmānaṃ ca dvijottamāḥ | puruṣānsa samuddhṛtya śivaloke mahīyate

Translation

Il relève dix générations avant et dix générations après—avec lui-même, ô meilleur des deux-fois-nés—et il est honoré dans le monde de Śiva.

Word by Word

• दश: ten
• दश: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दशन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्या-विशेषणम्; पुल्लिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), बहुवचनम्; (puruṣān इति विशेष्यस्य)

• पूर्वान्: former/previous
• पूर्वान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), बहुवचनम्; (puruṣān इति विशेष्यस्य)

• दशातीतान्: those beyond ten (i.e., ten more)
• दशातीतान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दश + अतीत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समासः (दश + अतीत = दशातीत); पुल्लिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), बहुवचनम्; (puruṣān इति विशेष्यस्य)

• आत्मानम्: himself/the self
• आत्मानम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचनम्

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्ययम् (conjunction)

• द्विजोत्तमाः: best of the twice-born (Brahmins)
• द्विजोत्तमाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समासः (द्विजः उत्तमः); पुल्लिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचनम्

• पुरुषान्: men/persons
• पुरुषान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), बहुवचनम्

• स: he
• स: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुल्लिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचनम्

• समुद्धृत्य: having rescued/raised up
• समुद्धृत्य: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-उद्-√हृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्तम् (absolutive/gerund); ‘having lifted/rescued’

• शिवलोके: in Shiva’s world
• शिवलोके: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिव + लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समासः (शिवस्य लोकः); पुल्लिङ्गे सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचनम्

• महीयते: is honored/glorified
• महीयते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √मह् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकारः (Present), आत्मनेपदम्; प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचनम्

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahākāla-pīṭha (implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis/‘dvijottamāḥ’ addressed (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee at a Śiva-pīṭha offers flowers and water; behind him a luminous line of ancestors and descendants rises toward a radiant Śivaloka, with Śiva’s emblem (liṅga/trident) presiding.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Śivaloka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage-linked rites are not merely personal; they are depicted as liberative for one’s lineage when performed in a Śiva-kṣetra.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Implicitly the same Ujjayinī Mahākāla-kṣetra described in the surrounding verses.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse states the fruit (phala) of the rite previously mentioned (śrāddha/worship); no new procedure is added here.