Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 11

Devanagari script

देवावताराश्च तथा चतुर्विंशतिसंख्यकाः । मासा मार्गशिराद्याश्च मासार्द्धाः पक्षसंज्ञकाः

Transliteration

devāvatārāśca tathā caturviṃśatisaṃkhyakāḥ | māsā mārgaśirādyāśca māsārddhāḥ pakṣasaṃjñakāḥ

Translation

അതുപോലെ ദേവാവതാരങ്ങളും ഇരുപത്തിനാലെന്ന സംഖ്യയായി എണ്ണപ്പെടുന്നു. മാർഗശീർഷാദി മാസങ്ങളും ‘പക്ഷ’ എന്നറിയപ്പെടുന്ന അർദ്ധമാസങ്ങളും ഈ പുണ്യക്രമത്തിൽ ഗണിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു.

Word by Word

• devāvatārāḥ: divine incarnations
• devāvatārāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva + avatāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः—देवानाम् अवताराः

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb)

• caturviṃśati-saṃkhyakāḥ: numbering twenty-four
• caturviṃśati-saṃkhyakāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: caturviṃśati (संख्या) + saṃkhyaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः—चतुर्विंशतिः संख्या यस्य/येषाम्

• māsāḥ: months
• māsāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• mārgaśirādyāḥ: beginning with Mārgaśīrṣa
• mārgaśirādyāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mārgaśiras (प्रातिपदिक) + ādya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः—मार्गशीर्षः आदिः येषाम् (beginning with Mārgaśīrṣa)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय

• māsārdhāḥ: half-months
• māsārdhāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa + ardha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः—मासस्य अर्धाः (half-months)

• pakṣasaṃjñakāḥ: called ‘pakṣa’
• pakṣasaṃjñakāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pakṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃjñaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः—पक्ष इति संज्ञा येषाम्

Speaker

Brahmā (in Brahma–Nārada dialogue; implied by section context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (chapter frame)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nārada

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A didactic tableau: sages indicate a mandala of time—twelve months and bright/dark fortnights—encircling twenty-four divine forms, suggesting a sacred arithmetic of the cosmos.

Characters & Entities

• Mārgaśīrṣa
• Pakṣa (fortnight)
• Devāvatāras

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Puranic dharma sanctifies cosmic order by mapping devotion onto structured cycles of time—months and fortnights become supports for worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader glorification belongs to Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra within Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya, with emphasis on Śāligrāma devotion.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A calendrical approach to worship—reckoning devotional practice through months (māsa) and fortnights (pakṣa).