Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 29

Devanagari script

नारायणानुस्मरणाज्जपध्यानाद्विशेषतः । विप्रणश्यन्ति पापानि गिरिकूटसमान्यपि

Transliteration

nārāyaṇānusmaraṇājjapadhyānādviśeṣataḥ | vipraṇaśyanti pāpāni girikūṭasamānyapi

Translation

ナーラーヤナを念じることによって、特にジャパ（数珠を使った祈り）と瞑想を通じて、山頂のように積み重なった罪でさえも完全に消滅する。

Word by Word

• नारायण: of Nārāyaṇa
• नारायण: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारायण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; समासाङ्ग (पूर्वपद)

• अनुस्मरणात्: from remembering (Nārāyaṇa)
• अनुस्मरणात्: Apadana (Cause/हेतु-अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनु-√स्मृ (धातु) + घञ् → अनुस्मरण (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषसमासः (नारायण-अनुस्मरणात्)

• जप: of recitation
• जप: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; समासाङ्ग (पूर्वपद)

• ध्यानात्: from meditation (and japa)
• ध्यानात्: Apadana (Cause/हेतु-अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ध्यान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषसमासः (जप-ध्यानात्)

• विशेषतः: especially
• विशेषतः: Prayojaka (Manner/रीति)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेषतः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण ('especially')

• विप्रणश्यन्ति: perish completely
• विप्रणश्यन्ति: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि-√नश् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• पापानि: sins
• पापानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• गिरि: of a mountain
• गिरि: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गिरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; समासाङ्ग (पूर्वपद)

• कूट: peak, mass
• कूट: Upamana (Comparison-base)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कूट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (as compound member), एकवचन; समासाङ्ग (पूर्वपद)

• समानि: equal to a mountain-peak (i.e., huge)
• समानि: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; उपमान-तत्पुरुषसमासः (गिरि-कूट-समानि)

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अपि-निपात (even/also)

Speaker

Śiva (deduced from immediate context in this adhyāya: later verse says 'śaṅkaraḥ abravīt')

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A meditator absorbed in Nārāyaṇa; behind him, mountain-like heaps labeled ‘pāpa’ crumble into ash under a subtle inner fire (tejas) radiating from the heart.

Characters & Entities

• Nārāyaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Remembrance of God—strengthened by mantra-japa and meditation—burns even the greatest karmic impurities.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse supports the wider Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha context of the chapter, where devotion and observances at sacred spots bear extraordinary fruit.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

An inner discipline: Nārāyaṇa-smaraṇa expressed through japa (repetition) and dhyāna (meditation).