Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

देवतास्तत्र तिष्ठंति कोटिकोटिप्रनायकाः । एकैका ब्राह्मणश्रेष्ठाः कलिकालभयाकुलाः

Transliteration

devatāstatra tiṣṭhaṃti koṭikoṭipranāyakāḥ | ekaikā brāhmaṇaśreṣṭhāḥ kalikālabhayākulāḥ

Translation

ആ പുണ്യസ്ഥാനത്ത് ദേവതകൾ വസിക്കുന്നു—കോടിക്കോടി നായകരായി; എന്നാൽ, ഹേ ബ്രാഹ്മണശ്രേഷ്ഠാ, ഓരോരുത്തരും കലിയുഗഭീതിയിൽ ആകുലരാണ്.

Word by Word

• devatāḥ: deities
• devatāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (there)

• tiṣṭhanti: stand/abide
• tiṣṭhanti: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (स्था धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural)

• koṭi-koṭi-pranāyakāḥ: leaders of crores upon crores
• koṭi-koṭi-pranāyakāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + pra-nāyaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (विशेषण-सम्बन्ध: ‘कोटि-कोटीनां प्रनायकाः’), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural) — ‘devatāḥ’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• ekaikāḥ: each individually
• ekaikāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka + eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वन्द्ववत् पुनरुक्त-समास/युग्म (each one, one by one), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural) — ‘brāhmaṇaśreṣṭhāḥ’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• brāhmaṇa-śreṣṭhāḥ: best of Brahmins
• brāhmaṇa-śreṣṭhāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी: ‘ब्राह्मणानां श्रेष्ठाः’), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• kali-kāla-bhaya-ākulāḥ: distressed by fear of the Kali age
• kali-kāla-bhaya-ākulāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kali (प्रातिपदिक) + kāla (प्रातिपदिक) + bhaya (प्रातिपदिक) + ākula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (सम्बन्ध: ‘कलिकालस्य भयेन आकुलाः’), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural) — ‘brāhmaṇaśreṣṭhāḥ’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narration style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: brāhmaṇa-śreṣṭha

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A vast deva-assembly in the kṣetra—countless divine leaders—yet their faces show concern; the atmosphere hints at Kali’s shadow beyond the sacred boundary, while the kṣetra itself remains luminous and protective.

Characters & Entities

• Devatāḥ
• Kali-yuga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even divine beings seek refuge in a powerful tīrtha when the age is spiritually difficult; sacred places are portrayed as shelters of dharma in Kali-yuga.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra, within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly in this verse; it sets the context for later ritual instructions connected to the kṣetra.