Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

युधिष्ठिर उवाच । आश्चर्यभूतं लोकेषु कथितं द्विजसत्तम । नर्मदेश्वरमाहात्म्यं कापिलं कथयस्व मे

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | āścaryabhūtaṃ lokeṣu kathitaṃ dvijasattama | narmadeśvaramāhātmyaṃ kāpilaṃ kathayasva me

Translation

യുധിഷ്ഠിരൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ ദ്വിജസത്തമാ! ലോകങ്ങളിൽ ഇത് അത്ഭുതകരമെന്നു പറയപ്പെടുന്നു. ദയവായി എനിക്ക് നർമദേശ്വരന്റെ കപിലാ-ബന്ധപ്പെട്ട മഹാത്മ്യം പറയുക.

Word by Word

• yudhiṣṭhiraḥ: Yudhiṣṭhira
• yudhiṣṭhiraḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yudhiṣṭhira (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• āścarya-bhūtam: wonderful; astonishing
• āścarya-bhūtam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: āścarya (प्रातिपदिक) + bhūta (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying implied matter/it)

• lokeṣu: in the worlds; among people
• lokeṣu: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), बहुवचन

• kathitam: told; narrated
• kathitam: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kath (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (Past Passive Participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying āścaryabhūtam)

• dvija-sattama: O best of twice-born
• dvija-sattama: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + sattama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; पुंलिङ्ग; (द्विजानाम् उत्तमः)

• narmadeśvara-māhātmyam: the greatness of Narmadeśvara
• narmadeśvara-māhātmyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: narmadā (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक) + māhātmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; (नर्मदेश्वरस्य माहात्म्यम्)

• kāpilaṃ: pertaining to Kapila/Kapilā
• kāpilaṃ: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāpila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying māhātmyam)

• kathayasva: tell; narrate
• kathayasva: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kathaya (णिजन्त from kath धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• me: to me
• me: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन

Speaker

Yudhiṣṭhira

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Narmadeśvara (Kapila-related māhātmya)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mārkaṇḍeya (dvijasattama)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yudhiṣṭhira, humble yet regal, questions the venerable Mārkaṇḍeya; behind them a symbolic map-like river landscape hints at Narmadeśvara and Kapilā Tīrtha, emphasizing wonder and inquiry.

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Narmadeśvara
• Kapilā/Kāpila

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A sincere seeker approaches sacred knowledge through humble inquiry, asking qualified sages to reveal the māhātmya of holy places and deities.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The passage points toward the Kapila/Kapilā tradition linked to Narmadeśvara in the Revā (Narmadā) sacred region.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed here; it is an invitation to hear (śravaṇa) the māhātmya narration, which itself is treated as meritorious in Purāṇic contexts.