Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

ततः प्रासादमासाद्य सुपर्णाख्यसमुद्भवम् । यावत्प्राप्तः परित्यक्तस्ताव त्प्राणैरुपोषितः

Transliteration

tataḥ prāsādamāsādya suparṇākhyasamudbhavam | yāvatprāptaḥ parityaktastāva tprāṇairupoṣitaḥ

Translation

ಆಮೇಲೆ ಅವನು ‘ಸುಪರ್ಣಾಖ್ಯ’ ಎಂಬ ಸ್ಥಳದಲ್ಲಿ ಉದ್ಭವಿಸಿದ ಆ ಪ್ರಾಸಾದ-ಮಂದಿರವನ್ನು ತಲುಪಿದನು. ತ್ಯಜಿಸಲ್ಪಟ್ಟವನಾಗಿ, ಪ್ರಾಣಮಾತ್ರದ ಆಧಾರದಿಂದ ಉಪವಾಸದಂತೆ ಸಹಿಸಿ ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಬಂದನು.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Temporal/देश-कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रमवाचक (sequence adverb): ‘then’

• prāsādam: a palace/mansion
• prāsādam: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāsāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• āsādya: having reached
• āsādya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ā + sad (धातु) + ya (ल्यप्)
• Form: ल्यबन्त अव्यय (gerund): ‘having reached/approached’

• suparṇa-ākhya-samudbhavam: arisen from (a place) named Suparṇa
• suparṇa-ākhya-samudbhavam: Karman (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: suparṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + ākhya (प्रातिपदिक) + samudbhava (सम्+उद्+भू धातु + घञ्/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: सुपर्णाख्यसमुद्भव (Tatpurusha; ‘originating from (a place) called Suparṇa’); पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; प्रासादम् इति विशेषण

• yāvat: until/as long as
• yāvat: Adhikarana (Temporal limit/कालावधि)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yāvat (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, परिमाण/अवधिवाचक (limit/extent marker): ‘as long as/until’

• prāptaḥ: having reached/obtained
• prāptaḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra + āp (धातु) + kta (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘having obtained/reached’

• parityaktaḥ: abandoned
• parityaktaḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pari + tyaj (धातु) + kta (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tāvat: so long
• tāvat: Adhikarana (Temporal extent/कालपरिमाण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tāvat (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, परिमाण/अवधिवाचक (correlative to yāvat): ‘so long/that long’

• prāṇaiḥ: with (his) vital breaths/life
• prāṇaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• upoṣitaḥ: kept fasting/sustained barely
• upoṣitaḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: upa + vas (धातु) + kta (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘kept fasting/kept alive with minimal sustenance’

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration within Tīrthamāhātmya; specific speaker not explicit in the verse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Suparṇākhyā

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At the edge of collapse, the pilgrim reaches a newly arisen temple at Suparṇākhyā; the prāsāda glows, and the man stands trembling, sustained only by breath, hands folded in añjali.

Characters & Entities

• Suparṇākhyā
• Prāsāda (temple)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Approaching a sacred shrine, even in utter destitution, is depicted as spiritually potent—arrival at the tīrtha/temple becomes the turning point.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

The Suparṇākhyā-associated prāsāda (temple/shrine) within this kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Upavāsa is implied through “upoṣitaḥ” (enduring without food), highlighting austerity caused by circumstance rather than formal vow.