Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

ब्राह्मण उवाच । सहस्रं याच्यते कन्या करोत्येकः करग्रहम् । वाङ्मात्रेण न तस्याः स्यात्पत्नीभावः कथंचन

Transliteration

brāhmaṇa uvāca | sahasraṃ yācyate kanyā karotyekaḥ karagraham | vāṅmātreṇa na tasyāḥ syātpatnībhāvaḥ kathaṃcana

Translation

Sang brāhmaṇa berkata: “Seribu orang boleh meminang sang gadis, tetapi hanya satu yang melakukan pengambilan tangan (karagraha) dalam pernikahan. Dengan kata-kata semata, ia takkan menjadi istri dengan cara apa pun.”

Word by Word

• brāhmaṇaḥ: the brahmin
• brāhmaṇaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; वक्ता (speaker tag)

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

• sahasram: a thousand (coins)
• sahasram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; संख्यावाचक (a thousand)

• yācyate: is asked/requested
• yācyate: Kriya (Passive predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yāc (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोगः (passive)

• kanyā: the maiden
• kanyā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kanyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• karoti: does / performs
• karoti: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ekaḥ: one (man)
• ekaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्तृवाचक (one person)

• kara-graham: the taking of the hand (marriage rite)
• kara-graham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kara (प्रातिपदिक) + graha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘करस्य ग्रहः’ (hand-taking)

• vāk-mātreṇa: by mere speech
• vāk-mātreṇa: Karana (Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāc (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषः; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; ‘वाचः मात्रेण’ = ‘by mere words’

• na: not
• na: Pratishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध

• tasyāḥ: of her
• tasyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन

• syāt: would be
• syāt: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• patnī-bhāvaḥ: the status of being a wife
• patnī-bhāvaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: patnī (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषः; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘पत्नीभावः’ = पत्नी-स्थिति/पत्नी-त्वम्

• kathaṃcana: in any way at all
• kathaṃcana: Kriya-viseshana (Degree/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kathaṃcana (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; ‘in any way/at all’ (indefinite adverb)

Speaker

Brāhmaṇa (explicit)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A brāhmaṇa teacher speaks firmly, counting suitors metaphorically as many, but pointing to the single decisive act: the bride’s hand being taken in ritual marriage.

Characters & Entities

• brāhmaṇa
• kanyā
• karagraha (marriage)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is grounded in valid saṃskāra (rite); social-sacral bonds like marriage require proper ritual action, not mere speech.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None is mentioned in this verse; it is a dharma-clarifying statement within the Māhātmya narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Karagraha (the formal taking of the bride’s hand) is indicated as the decisive act for establishing patnī-bhāva (wifehood).