Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

नानाविधानि शास्त्राणि स्मृतयश्च पृथग्विधाः । पुराणानि समस्तानि वीक्षध्वं सुसमाहिताः

Transliteration

nānāvidhāni śāstrāṇi smṛtayaśca pṛthagvidhāḥ | purāṇāni samastāni vīkṣadhvaṃ susamāhitāḥ

Translation

നാനാവിധ ശാസ്ത്രങ്ങളും, വ്യത്യസ്ത സ്മൃതികളും, സമസ്ത പുരാണങ്ങളും—പൂർണ്ണ ഏകാഗ്രതയോടെ—ശ്രദ്ധാപൂർവ്വം പരിശോധിക്കുവിൻ।

Word by Word

• नानाविधानि: of various kinds
• नानाविधानि: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नाना (अव्यय) + विध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारय (नानाविधानि = of various kinds)

• शास्त्राणि: treatises, scriptures
• शास्त्राणि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शास्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Plural)

• स्मृतयः: Smṛtis (traditional law texts)
• स्मृतयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्मृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Feminine, Nom, Plural)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• पृथग्विधाः: of different kinds
• पृथग्विधाः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पृथक् (अव्यय) + विध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारय (पृथग्विधाः = of different sorts)

• पुराणानि: Purāṇas
• पुराणानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुराण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Plural)

• समस्तानि: all, entire
• समस्तानि: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समस्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Plural; adjective)

• वीक्षध्वम्: look/examine (you all)
• वीक्षध्वम्: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वीक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद (Ātmanepada)

• सुसमाहिताः: well-attentive, well-collected (in mind)
• सुसमाहिताः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (अव्यय/उपसर्ग) + समाहित (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (Masculine, Nom, Plural; ‘well-composed/attentive’)

Speaker

Unnamed Nāgara dvija(s) (internal dialogue/counsel)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Their own council (mutual instruction) and Puṣpa (implicit beneficiary)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Scholars gather manuscripts and begin a focused review—Smṛtis and Purāṇas laid out—signaling a methodical search for the correct expiation.

Characters & Entities

• Śāstra
• Smṛti
• Purāṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is to be ascertained through careful consultation of authoritative traditions—śāstra, smṛti, and purāṇa—rather than impulse.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is procedural rather than geographical; it supports the tīrtha narrative by showing how correct expiation is determined within the sacred setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A prescription to consult authoritative texts; the concrete rite is introduced later.