Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

किमिदं किमिदं देव वर्तते ह्यधरोत्तरम् । त्रैलोक्यं सकलं येन व्याकुलत्वमुपागतम्

Transliteration

kimidaṃ kimidaṃ deva vartate hyadharottaram | trailokyaṃ sakalaṃ yena vyākulatvamupāgatam

Translation

આ શું છે, આ શું છે, હે દેવ! આવું અધરોત્તર રીતે કેમ બની રહ્યું છે, જેના કારણે સમગ્ર ત્રિલોક વ્યાકુળ થયું છે?

Word by Word

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular); प्रश्नवाचक (interrogative)

• idam: this
• idam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular); निर्देशवाचक (demonstrative)

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular); पुनरुक्त-प्रश्न (repeated question)

• idam: this
• idam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular)

• deva: O god / O Lord
• deva: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सम्बोधन (Vocative/8th), एकवचन (Singular)

• vartate: is happening / occurs
• vartate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vṛt (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular); आत्मनेपदम्

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), हेत्वर्थ/निश्चयार्थ (indeed/for)

• adhara-uttaram: upside-down; lower-and-upper reversed
• adhara-uttaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: adhara (प्रातिपदिक) + uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular); इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः (lower and upper)

• trailokyam: the three worlds
• trailokyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: trailokya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular)

• sakalam: entire, whole
• sakalam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sakala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular)

• yena: by which / because of which
• yena: Karana (Instrument/Cause/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Masc/Neut), तृतीया (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचन (Singular); सम्बन्धक (relative)

• vyākulatvam: agitation, turmoil
• vyākulatvam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyākulatva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular)

• upāgatam: has reached, has come to
• upāgatam: Kriya (Result state/क्रिया-फल)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: upa√gam (धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular); भूतकृदन्त (past participle)

Speaker

The Devas (addressing Brahmā, ‘Padmasaṃbhava’ in the next verse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Devas, alarmed, gesture toward a sky filled with ominous signs—darkened sun, swirling winds—while addressing Brahmā, asking why the worlds are overturned.

Characters & Entities

• Devas
• Trailokya (three worlds)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When dharma is disturbed, even the cosmos reflects imbalance; the wise seek the divine cause rather than panic.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is part of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya prologue; the specific locale is clarified in subsequent verses (Anarta region and Mahādeva’s presence).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it sets the narrative context through omens and cosmic anxiety.