Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

अहो भगवती पुण्या नर्मदेयमयोनिजा । रुद्रदेहाद्विनिष्क्रान्ता महापापक्षयंकरी

Transliteration

aho bhagavatī puṇyā narmadeyamayonijā | rudradehādviniṣkrāntā mahāpāpakṣayaṃkarī

Translation

អហោ! ព្រះនរមទា (Bhagavatī) នេះ ពិតជាបរិសុទ្ធ និងមានពុទ្ធិពរ—មិនកើតពីផ្ទៃមាតា; បានលេចចេញពីព្រះកាយរបស់ព្រះរុទ្រា ហើយជាអ្នកបំផ្លាញបាបធំៗទាំងអស់។

Word by Word

• अहो: oh! alas!
• अहो: Sambodhana/Exclamation (सम्बोधनार्थ-निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अहो (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विस्मय/आश्चर्यसूचक-निपात (interjection/particle of exclamation)

• भगवती: the Blessed Lady (goddess)
• भगवती: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेष्य (addressed deity)

• पुण्या: holy, meritorious
• पुण्या: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying भगवती)

• नर्मदा: Narmadā (river-goddess)
• नर्मदा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नाम (proper noun)

• इयम्: this (she)
• इयम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• अयोनिजा: not womb-born; unoriginated
• अयोनिजा: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ + योनिज (प्रातिपदिक; योनिज = योनि + ज)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुष (न-योनिजा) विशेषण

• रुद्रदेहात्: from Rudra’s body
• रुद्रदेहात्: Apadana (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रुद्र + देह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (रुद्रस्य देहः)

• विनिष्क्रान्ता: emerged, came out
• विनिष्क्रान्ता: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि + नि + √क्रम् (धातु) → निष्क्रान्त (कृदन्त-भूतकृदन्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), क्त-प्रत्यय; ‘having come forth’

• महापापक्षयंकरी: destroyer of great sins
• महापापक्षयंकरी: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महापाप + क्षय + कर (प्रातिपदिक; कर = √कृ ‘to do’ से)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषार्थ (महापापस्य क्षयम् करोति) विशेषण

Speaker

Yudhiṣṭhira

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revatī/Narmadā

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis/śaunaka-ādi (typical) or an in-text interlocutor praising Narmadā (contextual)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A radiant river-goddess Narmadā rises from Rudra/Śiva’s body, flowing as a luminous stream; sages on the bank offer añjali while the river glows with purifying power.

Characters & Entities

• Narmadā (Revā)
• Rudra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Narmadā is revered as a divine presence whose very origin from Rudra makes her uniquely capable of removing even grave karmic impurities.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Narmadā/Revā herself as a living tīrtha, celebrated within the Revā Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is stated, but the verse supports tīrtha-sevā such as snāna, darśana, and pilgrimage to Narmadā.