Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

तीर्थानां तीर्थमाद्यं च गंगाख्यमवतारितम् । तद्विष्णोश्चरणेनैव समेतं ब्रह्मणा कृतम्

Transliteration

tīrthānāṃ tīrthamādyaṃ ca gaṃgākhyamavatāritam | tadviṣṇoścaraṇenaiva sametaṃ brahmaṇā kṛtam

Translation

തീർത്ഥങ്ങളിലൊക്കെയും ആദ്യമായ തീർത്ഥം ‘ഗംഗ’ എന്ന പേരിൽ അവതരിച്ചു. അത് വിഷ്ണുവിന്റെ പാദത്തോടെയേ സംയുക്തമായി ബ്രഹ്മാവാൽ സ്ഥാപിക്കപ്പെട്ടു.

Word by Word

• tīrthānām: of pilgrim-places
• tīrthānām: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन

• tīrtham: (the) tīrtha
• tīrtham: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; विधेय/उपपद-प्रयोग (predicate noun)

• ādyam: prime/first
• ādyam: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ādya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय

• gaṃgākhyam: named ‘Gaṅgā’
• gaṃgākhyam: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gaṃgā + ākhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (gaṃgāyāḥ ākhyaṃ = named Gaṅgā)

• avatāritam: was caused to descend
• avatāritam: Kriya (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ava + tṝ (धातु) → avatārita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (was brought down)

• tad: that
• tad: Sambandha
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; निर्देशक (referring to that tīrtha)

• viṣṇoḥ: of Viṣṇu
• viṣṇoḥ: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन

• caraṇena: by (his) foot
• caraṇena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• eva: indeed/only
• eva: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय (restrictive particle)

• sametam: associated/combined
• sametam: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam + i (धातु) → sameta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (endowed/associated)

• brahmaṇā: by Brahmā
• brahmaṇā: Karana (Agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• kṛtam: was made
• kṛtam: Kriya (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु) → kṛta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (was made)

Speaker

Narrator (Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa per Māheśvara-khaṇḍa convention)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgā (Viṣṇupadī)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brahmā reverently receives/establishes the Gaṅgā stream that issues from Viṣṇu’s foot, presenting her as the ‘ādi-tīrtha’ to the worlds.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Viṣṇu
• Brahmā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It declares Gaṅgā’s unsurpassed sanctity, grounding pilgrimage merit in a divine, cosmic origin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gaṅgā-tīrtha—Gaṅgā as the archetypal sacred ford and purifier.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit injunction, but it supports Gaṅgā-snān and Gaṅgā-sevā as supreme purificatory practices.