Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 21

Devanagari script

तस्मान्नास्ति परः कश्चित्पूज्यपूज्यः स एव च । ऐश्वर्यात्सर्वदेवानामीशानस्तेन निर्मितः

Transliteration

tasmānnāsti paraḥ kaścitpūjyapūjyaḥ sa eva ca | aiśvaryātsarvadevānāmīśānastena nirmitaḥ

Translation

ດັ່ງນັ້ນ ບໍ່ມີໃຜສູງກວ່າ; ພຣະອົງພຽງອົງດຽວແມ່ນຜູ້ຄວນບູຊາສູງສຸດ. ດ້ວຍອຳນາດອັນເປັນເຈົ້າ ພຣະ Īśāna ຖືກສະຖາປະນາເປັນອົງຈອມເທວະທັງປວງ.

Word by Word

• tasmāt: therefore / from that
• tasmāt: Apadana (Source/Reason/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tasmāt (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Ablative singular: therefore/from that)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Sentence particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय

• asti: there is
• asti: Kriya (Existential/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• paraḥ: other / superior
• paraḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (other/superior)

• kaścit: anyone / someone
• kaścit: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaścid (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Indefinite pronoun)

• pūjya-pūjyaḥ: most worthy of worship
• pūjya-pūjyaḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pūjya (कृत्: पूज् + य) + pūjya (कृत्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; द्वन्द्व-समास (पुनरुक्ति-प्रयोग: highly worship-worthy)

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Nominative singular pronoun)

• eva: alone / indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अवधारणार्थ

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• aiśvaryāt: from (his) sovereignty / by power
• aiśvaryāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aiśvarya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Ablative singular: from/owing to lordship)

• sarva-devānām: of all the gods
• sarva-devānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारय (सर्वे देवाः)

• īśānaḥ: Īśāna (the Lord)
• īśānaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Nominative singular)

• tena: by him / by that
• tena: Karana (Instrument/Agent-in-passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Instrumental singular: by him/thereby)

• nirmitaḥ: created / fashioned
• nirmitaḥ: Kriya (Predicate in passive/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: nir-mā (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator (contextual narration within Nāgarakhaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A declarative, stuti-like tableau: Īśāna enthroned or standing radiant, devas arranged in reverent tiers, acknowledging his overlordship; the composition emphasizes vertical hierarchy and central luminosity.

Characters & Entities

• Īśāna (Śiva)
• devas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It affirms Śiva/Īśāna as the highest object of worship, grounding devotion in divine sovereignty.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader chapter belongs to a tīrtha-māhātmya, but this verse is theological, praising Īśāna rather than naming a place.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicit prescription: direct one’s pūjā toward the supreme, Īśāna, as the highest worship-worthy.