Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

कुरुक्षेत्रं भुवि परमन्तरिक्षे त्रिपुष्करम् । पुरुषोत्तमं दिवि परं देवतीर्थं परात्परम्

Transliteration

kurukṣetraṃ bhuvi paramantarikṣe tripuṣkaram | puruṣottamaṃ divi paraṃ devatīrthaṃ parātparam

Translation

ഭൂമിയിൽ കുരുക്ഷേത്രം പരമം, അന്തരീക്ഷത്തിൽ ത്രിപുഷ്കരം പരമം, സ്വർഗത്തിൽ പുരുഷോത്തമം പരമം—എന്നാലും ദേവതീർത്ഥം പരമാത്പരമാണ്.

Word by Word

• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Kurukṣetra
• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Karta (Subject; item in list)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरुक्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक; कुरु + क्षेत्र)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• भुवि: on earth
• भुवि: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भू (प्रातिपदिक; स्त्री. 'भू' = पृथिवी)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• परम्: supreme
• परम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• अन्तरिक्षे: in the mid-region/atmosphere
• अन्तरिक्षे: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्तरिक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• त्रिपुष्करम्: Tripuṣkara (the three Puṣkaras)
• त्रिपुष्करम्: Karta (Subject; item in list)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रि + पुष्कर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• पुरुषोत्तमम्: Puruṣottama (supreme person/place)
• पुरुषोत्तमम्: Karta (Subject; item in list)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुषोत्तम (प्रातिपदिक; पुरुष + उत्तम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• दिवि: in heaven
• दिवि: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव्/द्यौः (प्रातिपदिक; 'दिव्' as heaven)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• परम्: supreme
• परम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• देवतीर्थम्: Devatīrtha
• देवतीर्थम्: Karta (Subject; main topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवतीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक; देव + तीर्थ)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• परात्परम्: higher than the highest, transcendent
• परात्परम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परात्पर (प्रातिपदिक; परात् + पर)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (अतिशयार्थ)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Devātīrtha

Type: tirtha

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cosmographic tableau: three horizontal registers—earth with Kurukṣetra, mid-region with Tripuṣkara, heaven with Puruṣottama—each glowing; above them all, Devātīrtha shines as a fourth, transcendent radiance, indicating ‘parātparam’.

Characters & Entities

• Kurukṣetra
• Tripuṣkara
• Puruṣottama
• Devātīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic māhātmya often teaches through comparison: Devātīrtha is praised as surpassing even the most renowned sacred realms.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Devātīrtha is the central site, exalted above Kurukṣetra, Tripuṣkara, and Puruṣottama.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse functions as a eulogy establishing Devātīrtha’s unmatched status.