Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

तदाप्रभृति तत्तीर्थं गङ्गावाहकमुत्तमम् । ब्रह्माद्यैरृषिभिस्तात पारम्पर्यक्रमागतैः

Transliteration

tadāprabhṛti tattīrthaṃ gaṅgāvāhakamuttamam | brahmādyairṛṣibhistāta pāramparyakramāgataiḥ

Translation

അന്നുമുതൽ ആ അത്യുത്തമ തീർത്ഥം ‘ഗംഗാവാഹക’ എന്ന നാമത്തിൽ പ്രസിദ്ധമായി. ഹേ താതാ, ബ്രഹ്മാദി ഋഷിമാർ പരമ്പരാക്രമമായി വന്ന് അവിടെ (അതിനെ ആദരിച്ചു).

Word by Word

• तदा-प्रभृति: from that time onward
• तदा-प्रभृति: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय) + प्रभृति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समासः; कालवाचक-अव्ययम् (since then/from that time)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्; (तत्तीर्थम् इत्यस्य निर्देशः)

• तीर्थम्: ford/pilgrimage-place
• तीर्थम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचनम्

• गङ्गा-वाहकम्: the bearer/channel of the Gaṅgā
• गङ्गा-वाहकम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गङ्गा (प्रातिपदिक) + वाहक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गङ्गायाः वाहकम्); विशेषणम् (qualifying तीर्थम्)

• उत्तमम्: excellent/supreme
• उत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्; विशेषणम्

• ब्रह्म-आद्यैः: by Brahmā and others
• ब्रह्म-आद्यैः: Karana (Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचनम्; तत्पुरुषः (ब्रह्मा आदिः येषाम्)

• ऋषिभिः: by sages
• ऋषिभिः: Karana (Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋषि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचनम्

• तात: O dear one/son
• तात: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तात (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचनम्

• पारम्पर्य-क्रम-आगतैः: arrived/handed down in successive tradition
• पारम्पर्य-क्रम-आगतैः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पारम्पर्य (प्रातिपदिक) + क्रम (प्रातिपदिक) + आगत (आ-गम् धातु, क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचनम्; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (पारम्पर्येण क्रमेण आगताः); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त विशेषणम् (qualifying ब्रह्माद्यैः/ऋषिभिः)

Speaker

Narrator (Mārkaṇḍeya, inferred)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgāvāhaka

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: tāta (affectionate address) indicates a narrator addressing a close listener (likely a sage-to-sage or Sūta-to-ṛṣi frame typical of Purāṇas)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A venerable assembly of Brahmā and ancient sages arrives at a river-ford; they perform ācamana and worship, establishing the tīrtha’s renown as Gaṅgāvāhaka.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgāvāhaka Tīrtha
• Brahmā
• Ṛṣis (sages)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A tīrtha’s sanctity is reinforced by living tradition—its praise is carried forward by the authority of Brahmā and the lineage of sages.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gaṅgāvāhaka Tīrtha (a celebrated bathing-place in the Revā Khaṇḍa pilgrimage landscape).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific rite is commanded here; the verse emphasizes the tīrtha’s recognized status and its veneration by ancient sages.