Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 40

Devanagari script

एवमागच्छतस्तस्य गतं मासचतुष्टयम् । अपश्यतो महादेवं दिदृक्षागतचेतसः

Transliteration

evamāgacchatastasya gataṃ māsacatuṣṭayam | apaśyato mahādevaṃ didṛkṣāgatacetasaḥ

Translation

ഇങ്ങനെ വരികയും പോകികയും ചെയ്തുകൊണ്ടിരിക്കെ അവന് നാലുമാസം കഴിഞ്ഞു; ദർശനാഭിലാഷയിൽ മനസ്സ് പതിഞ്ഞിരുന്നിട്ടും മഹാദേവനെ കാണാൻ കഴിഞ്ഞില്ല।

Word by Word

• evam: thus
• evam: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (प्रकारवाचक-क्रियाविशेषण) — 'thus/in this manner'

• āgacchataḥ: of him who was coming
• āgacchataḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ā-√gam (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त (परस्मैपदी), पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन — 'of (him) who was coming/returning'

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन — 'of him'

• gatam: elapsed
• gatam: Kriya (Predicate participle)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (भूतकर्मणि), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — 'passed/elapsed' (agreeing with māsacatuṣṭayam)

• māsa-catuṣṭayam: a period of four months
• māsa-catuṣṭayam: Karta (Subject of 'elapsed'/कर्तृस्थानी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa-catuṣṭaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (षष्ठी/समाहार): मासानां चतुष्टयम् = 'a set of four months'

• apaśyataḥ: of him who did not see
• apaśyataḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-√paś (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन — 'of (him) not seeing'

• mahādevam: Mahādeva (Śiva)
• mahādevam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय: महान् देवः = 'Mahādeva (Śiva)'

• didṛkṣā-āgata-cetasaḥ: whose mind was intent on seeing (eager to see)
• didṛkṣā-āgata-cetasaḥ: Sambandha (Genitive qualifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: didṛkṣā-āgata-cetas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष: दिदृक्षा (द्रष्टुम् इच्छा) + आगत + चेतस् = 'whose mind had come to (the desire) to see' अर्थात् 'eager to see'

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator within Nāgarakhaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A montage-like sense of time: the devotee repeatedly approaches the sacred place over four months, yet Mahādeva remains unseen; the pilgrim’s gaze stays fixed with longing.

Characters & Entities

• Mahādeva
• Cāturmāsya (implied four months)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True pilgrimage-bhakti endures time and delay; longing for darśana itself becomes a purifying discipline.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A Himalayan tīrtha context within Nāgarakhaṇḍa 122, where Mahādeva’s darśana is sought.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed; the verse highlights a four-month devotional waiting/observance (cāturmāsya timeframe).