Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

अष्टषष्टिषु गोत्राणां नायकत्वे व्यवस्थितः । तव वाक्येन सर्वाणि गोत्राणि द्विजसत्तम

Transliteration

aṣṭaṣaṣṭiṣu gotrāṇāṃ nāyakatve vyavasthitaḥ | tava vākyena sarvāṇi gotrāṇi dvijasattama

Translation

അഷ്ടഷഷ്ടി ഗോത്രങ്ങളുടെ നായകസ്ഥാനത്ത് നീ സ്ഥാപിതനാകുന്നു; ഹേ ദ്വിജസത്തമാ! നിന്റെ വചനത്താൽ എല്ലാ ഗോത്രങ്ങളും (ധർമ്മകർമ്മങ്ങളിൽ) നയിക്കപ്പെടും।

Word by Word

• aṣṭa-ṣaṣṭiṣu: among the sixty-eight
• aṣṭa-ṣaṣṭiṣu: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭa-ṣaṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक; अष्ट + षष्टि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन; अधिकरण; ‘अष्टषष्टि’ = 68 (in the sixty-eight)

• gotrāṇām: of the lineages (gotras)
• gotrāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; सम्बन्ध

• nāyakatve: in leadership
• nāyakatve: Adhikarana (State/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāyaka-tva (प्रातिपदिक; नायक + त्व)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; अधिकरण; भाववाचक (state of leadership)

• vyavasthitaḥ: is established/positioned
• vyavasthitaḥ: Karta (Predicate/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-ava-sthā (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; क्त (past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण

• tava: your
• tava: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध

• vākyena: by (your) word/command
• vākyena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vākya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण

• sarvāṇi: all
• sarvāṇi: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषण (gotrāṇi)

• gotrāṇi: the gotras
• gotrāṇi: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; कर्ता (of implied verb)

• dvija-sattama: O best of the twice-born
• dvija-sattama: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija-sattama (प्रातिपदिक; द्विज + सत्तम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; संबोधन

Speaker

Sūta (narrating a directive/boon addressed to a brāhmaṇa leader)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis of Naimiṣāraṇya (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A dignified assembly where the appointed dvija-leader stands or sits centrally; representatives of many gotras listen; a symbolic count of ‘68’ is suggested through grouped figures or banners; shrine presence in the background legitimizes authority.

Characters & Entities

• Gotras (68)
• Dvija (brāhmaṇa community)
• Nāgaras (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma in a sacred region is upheld through orderly lineage structures guided by qualified spiritual leadership.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The statement belongs to the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra narrative stream in Nāgara Khaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific rite; it describes the appointment/recognition of leadership overseeing gotra-based community duties.