Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

हरिर्भागीरथी विप्रा विप्रा भागीरथी हरिः । भागीरथी हरिर्विप्राः सारमेकं जगत्त्रये

Transliteration

harirbhāgīrathī viprā viprā bhāgīrathī hariḥ | bhāgīrathī harirviprāḥ sāramekaṃ jagattraye

Translation

ഹേ ബ്രാഹ്മണന്മാരേ, ഹരിയേ ഭാഗീരഥി; ബ്രാഹ്മണന്മാരേ ഭാഗീരഥി; ഭാഗീരഥിയേ ഹരി. ഹേ ബ്രാഹ്മണന്മാരേ, ത്രിലോകത്തിലും ഇതേ ഏക സാരം.

Word by Word

• हरिः: Hari (Vishnu)
• हरिः: Karta/Predicate (Subject/प्रातिपदिक-वाक्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• भागीरथी: Bhāgīrathī (Ganga)
• भागीरथी: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भागीरथी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (feminine), प्रथमा, एकवचन

• विप्राः: Brahmins
• विप्राः: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• विप्राः: Brahmins
• विप्राः: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• भागीरथी: Bhāgīrathī
• भागीरथी: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भागीरथी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• हरिः: Hari
• हरिः: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• भागीरथी: Bhāgīrathī
• भागीरथी: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भागीरथी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• हरिः: Hari
• हरिः: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• विप्राः: Brahmins
• विप्राः: Karta/Predicate (Equative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• सारम्: essence
• सारम्: Karma/Predicate (Essence/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विधेय (predicate)

• एकम्: one; single
• एकम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण सारम्

• जगत्: world
• जगत्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जगत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (समासे पूर्वपद)

• त्रये: in the three (worlds)
• त्रये: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (Locative/7th), एकवचन; सप्तमी-तत्पुरुष: जगत्-त्रये = त्रिषु जगत्सु (in the three worlds)

Speaker

King (devotional proclamation to the brāhmaṇas)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhāgīrathī (Gaṅgā)

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: viprāḥ (brāhmaṇas)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A triadic emblematic tableau: Hari’s radiant form, the flowing Bhāgīrathī, and brāhmaṇas seated in purity—linked by a single luminous thread signifying ‘one essence’.

Characters & Entities

• Hari
• Bhāgīrathī (Gaṅgā)
• Brāhmaṇas (Vipra)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The verse declares a sacred unity: devotion to Hari, reverence for Gaṅgā, and honoring vipras converge as a single essence of dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Bhāgīrathī (Gaṅgā) is explicitly praised—central to tīrtha culture and sacred geography across Purāṇic traditions.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual; the implied practice is tīrtha-reverence—honoring Gaṅgā and the dharmic community (vipras).