Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

। सूत उवाच । तस्मिन्नुत्पाटिते लिंगे भूतलाद्द्विजसत्तमाः । पातालाज्जाह्नवीतोयं तेन मार्गेण निःसृतम् । सर्वपापहरं नॄणां सर्वकामप्रदायकम्

Transliteration

| sūta uvāca | tasminnutpāṭite liṃge bhūtalāddvijasattamāḥ | pātālājjāhnavītoyaṃ tena mārgeṇa niḥsṛtam | sarvapāpaharaṃ nṝṇāṃ sarvakāmapradāyakam

Translation

सूत बोले—हे द्विजसत्तमो, जब वह लिंग पृथ्वी-तल से उखाड़ा गया, तब पाताल से जाह्नवी (गंगा) का जल उसी मार्ग से निकल आया; वह मनुष्यों के सब पाप हरने वाला और सब कामनाएँ देने वाला है।

Word by Word

• sūtaḥ: Sūta
• sūtaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• tasmin: in that
• tasmin: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• utpāṭite: when (it was) uprooted
• utpāṭite: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ut + pāṭ (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle)

• liṅge: in the liṅga
• liṅge: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• bhūtalāt: from the earth's surface
• bhūtalāt: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūtala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन

• dvija-sattamāḥ: O best of the twice-born
• dvija-sattamāḥ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija + sat-tama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, बहुवचन; कर्मधारय (श्रेष्ठा द्विजाः)

• pātālāt: from Pātāla (netherworld)
• pātālāt: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन

• jāhnavī-toyam: the water of Jāhnavī (Gaṅgā)
• jāhnavī-toyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jāhnavī + toya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (Jāhnavyāḥ toyam = water of the Ganges)

• tena: by that/through that
• tena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• mārgeṇa: by the path/route
• mārgeṇa: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mārga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन

• niḥsṛtam: emerged/flowed out
• niḥsṛtam: Predicate complement (विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nis + sṛ (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (gone out/emerged)

• sarva-pāpa-haram: removing all sins
• sarva-pāpa-haram: Adjective of subject (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva + pāpa + hara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष (sarvapāpāni harati)

• nṝṇām: of men
• nṝṇām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• sarva-kāma-pradāyakam: granting all desires
• sarva-kāma-pradāyakam: Adjective of subject (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva + kāma + pradāyaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष (sarvān kāmān pradadāti)

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvijasattamāḥ (assembled sages)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A dramatic moment: the liṅga has been uprooted, leaving a sacred opening; from it surges crystalline Gaṅgā-water, shimmering with divine light, while sages and pilgrims watch in astonishment; the landscape suggests a newly formed kund/stream at the shrine.

Characters & Entities

• Sūta
• Liṅga
• Jāhnavī (Gaṅgā)
• Pātāla

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divinely manifested tīrtha-waters purify all sins and fulfill righteous desires when approached with devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A Nāgara Khaṇḍa tīrtha where Gaṅgā (Jāhnavī) is said to have emerged via a passage created when a liṅga was uprooted (the site-name is not included in the excerpt).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly, tīrtha-sevā such as snāna (ritual bathing) in the sin-destroying waters is indicated by the stated fruits.