Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 12

Devanagari script

पृथिव्यां नैमिषं तीर्थमन्तरिक्षे च पुष्करम् । त्रैलोक्ये तु कुरुक्षेत्रं विशेषेण व्यवस्थितम्

Transliteration

pṛthivyāṃ naimiṣaṃ tīrthamantarikṣe ca puṣkaram | trailokye tu kurukṣetraṃ viśeṣeṇa vyavasthitam

Translation

പൃഥ്വിയിൽ നൈമിഷം തീർത്ഥം, അന്തരീക്ഷത്തിൽ പുഷ്കരം; ത്രിലോകമൊട്ടാകെ കുരുക്ഷേത്രം പ്രത്യേക മഹിമയോടെ സ്ഥാപിതമാണ്.

Word by Word

• पृथिव्याम्: on the earth
• पृथिव्याम्: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथिवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन

• नैमिषम्: Naimiṣa
• नैमिषम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैमिष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; नाम (Naimiṣa)

• तीर्थम्: holy place
• तीर्थम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• अन्तरिक्षे: in the mid-air
• अन्तरिक्षे: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्तरिक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Coordination/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय

• पुष्करम्: Puṣkara
• पुष्करम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुष्कर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; नाम (Puṣkara)

• त्रैलोक्ये: in the three worlds
• त्रैलोक्ये: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; त्रयाणां लोकानां समाहारः (the three worlds)

• तु: but; indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेषार्थक (but/indeed)

• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Kurukṣetra
• कुरुक्षेत्रम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरुक्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; नाम (Kurukṣetra)

• विशेषेण: especially
• विशेषेण: Prakara (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया-एकवचन-रूपेण अव्ययीभाववत् क्रियाविशेषण (instrumental used adverbially: 'especially')

• व्यवस्थितम्: is established; is set
• व्यवस्थितम्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + अव + स्था (धातु) (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक: व्यवस्थित)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; 'well-established/ordained'

Speaker

Brahmā

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Naimiṣa / Puṣkara / Kurukṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Purāṇic audience (implicit)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A didactic, map-like vision: three sacred sites indicated across realms—earthly forest hermitage (Naimiṣa), a luminous mid-air lake/lotus (Puṣkara), and a vast sacred plain (Kurukṣetra) radiating across the three worlds.

Characters & Entities

• Naimiṣa (Naimiṣāraṇya)
• Puṣkara
• Kurukṣetra
• Trailokya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred geography spans cosmic levels; certain tīrthas are preeminent within their respective realms.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Puṣkara is glorified as the tīrtha of the antarikṣa, alongside Naimiṣa (earth) and Kurukṣetra (trailokya).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it is a doctrinal mapping of tīrtha eminence.