Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

। श्रीमार्कण्डेय उवाच । ततो गच्छेत्तु राजेन्द्र यमहास्यमनुत्तमम् । सर्वपापहरं तीर्थं नर्मदातटमाश्रितम्

Transliteration

| śrīmārkaṇḍeya uvāca | tato gacchettu rājendra yamahāsyamanuttamam | sarvapāpaharaṃ tīrthaṃ narmadātaṭamāśritam

Translation

ശ്രീ മാർകണ്ഡേയൻ പറഞ്ഞു—അതിനുശേഷം, ഹേ രാജേന്ദ്രാ! നർമദാതീരത്തെ ആശ്രയിച്ച, സർവ്വപാപഹരമായ, യമഹാസ്യം എന്ന അനുത്തമ തീർത്ഥത്തിലേക്ക് പോകണം.

Word by Word

• श्रीमार्कण्डेयः: the venerable Mārkaṇḍeya
• श्रीमार्कण्डेयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रीमार्कण्डेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय: ‘श्रीमान् मार्कण्डेयः’

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: देश/कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: then/from there)

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय (particle: indeed)

• राजेन्द्र: O king of kings
• राजेन्द्र: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजेन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘राज्ञाम् इन्द्रः’

• यमहास्यम्: Yamahāsya (tīrtha)
• यमहास्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यमहास्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘यमस्य हास्यम्’ (name of a tīrtha)

• अनुत्तमम्: unsurpassed
• अनुत्तमम्: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनुत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषण

• सर्वपापहरम्: removing all sins
• सर्वपापहरम्: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्वपापहर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘सर्वेषां पापानां हरः’

• तीर्थम्: pilgrimage place
• तीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• नर्मदा-तटम्: the bank of the Narmadā
• नर्मदा-तटम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक) + तट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘नर्मदायाः तटम्’

• आश्रितम्: situated on/resorting to
• आश्रितम्: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आश्रित (कृदन्त; श्रि धातु, आ-उपसर्ग, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि-प्रत्यय (past passive participle)

Speaker

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Yamahāsya

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Mārkaṇḍeya instructs the king to proceed to Yamahāsya; the Narmadā flows broad and calm, with a marked ford/ghāṭa and a small shrine signifying the tīrtha’s presence.

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Yamahāsya Tīrtha
• Narmadā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage (tīrtha-yātrā) undertaken with faith is presented as a means of purification and moral renewal.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Yamahāsya Tīrtha, located on the bank of the Narmadā (Revā).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The prescription is tīrtha-gamana—going to Yamahāsya as a purificatory pilgrimage act (snāna and related rites are implied by tīrtha practice, though not detailed here).