Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 6

Devanagari script

मण्डितं सप्तभिः खण्डैः स्कान्दं यः शृणुयान्नरः । न तस्य पुण्यसंख्यानं कर्तुं शक्येत केनचित्

Transliteration

maṇḍitaṃ saptabhiḥ khaṇḍaiḥ skāndaṃ yaḥ śṛṇuyānnaraḥ | na tasya puṇyasaṃkhyānaṃ kartuṃ śakyeta kenacit

Translation

Quiconque écoute le Skanda (Purāṇa), orné de sept grandes sections, nul ne saurait en calculer la mesure de son mérite.

Word by Word

• maṇḍitam: adorned
• maṇḍitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: maṇḍita (कृदन्त; √maṇḍ/मण्ड्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त) ‘adorned/embellished’

• saptabhiḥ: with seven
• saptabhiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sapta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: त्रिलिङ्ग (संख्याविशेषण), तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन

• khaṇḍaiḥ: sections/parts
• khaṇḍaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन

• skāndam: the Skanda(-Purāṇa)
• skāndam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: skānda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun)

• śṛṇuyāt: should hear
• śṛṇuyāt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष? (actually 3rd person), एकवचन; ‘should hear’

• naraḥ: a man/person
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• tasya: of him/of that person
• tasya: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• puṇya-saṃkhyānam: the counting/measure of merit
• puṇya-saṃkhyānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃkhyāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (puṇyasya saṃkhyānam)

• kartum: to do/to make
• kartum: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (infinitive), ‘to do/to make’

• śakyeta: could be possible
• śakyeta: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śak (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोगार्थ (passive sense): ‘could be possible’

• kenacit: by anyone
• kenacit: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; अनिश्चित (indefinite) ‘by anyone’

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Skanda Purāṇa (as meta-tīrtha)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrim-audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A symbolic mandala of seven panels, each depicting a khanda’s sacred geography (mountain, river, city, coastal shrine), with a central listener holding hands in añjali; above, the Skanda Purāṇa manuscript radiates light.

Characters & Entities

• Skanda Purāṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional hearing of the Purāṇa generates vast puṇya beyond ordinary reckoning, encouraging sustained engagement with sacred narration.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is general; within this section the larger glorification remains Dvārakā as a supreme tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śravaṇa—listening to the Skanda Purāṇa (ideally as a complete, structured recitation).