Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

व्यास उवाच । शृणु राजन्यथावृत्तं धर्म्मारण्ये शुभं मतम् । यदिदं कथयिष्यामि अशेषाघौघनाशनम्

Transliteration

vyāsa uvāca | śṛṇu rājanyathāvṛttaṃ dharmmāraṇye śubhaṃ matam | yadidaṃ kathayiṣyāmi aśeṣāghaughanāśanam

Translation

വ്യാസൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ രാജാവേ! ധർമാരണ്യത്തിൽ സംഭവിച്ച മംഗളകരമായ വൃത്താന്തം കേൾക്കുക. ഞാൻ പറയുന്നത് സമസ്ത പാപപ്രവാഹവും നശിപ്പിക്കുന്നതാണ്.

Word by Word

• व्यासः: Vyāsa
• व्यासः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्यास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• शृणु: listen
• शृणु: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √श्रु (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• राजन्: O king
• राजन्: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• यथा-वृत्तम्: the account as it occurred
• यथा-वृत्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यथा (अव्यय) + वृत्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास (यथावृत्तम् = as it happened), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• धर्मारण्ये: in Dharmāraṇya
• धर्मारण्ये: Adhikarana (Place locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्मारण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• शुभम्: auspicious
• शुभम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (of मतम्/वृत्तम्)

• मतम्: teaching/opinion (account)
• मतम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• यत्: which
• यत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun)

• इदम्: this
• इदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; निर्देश (demonstrative)

• कथयिष्यामि: I will narrate
• कथयिष्यामि: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √कथय् (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (simple future), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• अशेष-अघ-ओघ-नाशनम्: destroyer of all heaps of sin
• अशेष-अघ-ओघ-नाशनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अशेष (प्रातिपदिक) + अघ (प्रातिपदिक) + ओघ (प्रातिपदिक) + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास (अघानाम् ओघस्य नाशनम्; अशेष = without remainder), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (of कथनम्/वृत्तम् implied)

Speaker

Vyāsa

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (Rājan)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Vyāsa seated as narrator, addressing a king in attentive posture; a forest-hermitage ambience suggesting Dharmāraṇya; manuscripts, sages, and a calm didactic setting.

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa
• King (Rājan)
• Dharmāraṇya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Hearing sacred history (śravaṇa) connected to a holy place is itself purifying and is praised as sin-destroying.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dharmāraṇya is the central sacred locale whose narrative is proclaimed auspicious and purifying.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śravaṇa—listening to the puranic account—is presented as a spiritually efficacious act.