Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 7

Devanagari script

य इदं धर्ममाहात्म्यं ब्राह्मणाय प्रयच्छति । स्वर्गलोके वसेत्तावद्यावदक्षरसंख्यया

Transliteration

ya idaṃ dharmamāhātmyaṃ brāhmaṇāya prayacchati | svargaloke vasettāvadyāvadakṣarasaṃkhyayā

Translation

ഈ ധർമ്മമാഹാത്മ്യം ബ്രാഹ്മണനു ദാനം ചെയ്യുന്നവൻ, ഇതിലെ അക്ഷരങ്ങളുടെ എണ്ണത്തിനൊത്ത കാലം സ്വർഗ്ഗലോകത്തിൽ വസിക്കും.

Word by Word

• yaḥ: he who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक-सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• idam: this
• idam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; निर्देश-सर्वनाम

• dharma-māhātmyam: the greatness of dharma
• dharma-māhātmyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक) + māhātmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (धर्मस्य माहात्म्यम्)

• brāhmaṇāya: to a Brahmin
• brāhmaṇāya: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन

• prayacchati: gives, bestows
• prayacchati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√yam (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• svarga-loke: in the world of heaven
• svarga-loke: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svarga (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (स्वर्गस्य लोके)

• vaset: may dwell
• vaset: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vas (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• tāvat: so long
• tāvat: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tāvat (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययीभावार्थ-शब्द)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाण/अवधि-वाचक (correlative adverb)

• yāvat: as long as
• yāvat: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yāvat (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययीभावार्थ-शब्द)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाण/अवधि-वाचक (relative adverb)

• akṣara-saṃkhyayā: by the count of syllables (i.e., for as many as the syllables)
• akṣara-saṃkhyayā: Karana (Instrument/Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: akṣara (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃkhyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (अक्षराणां संख्या)

Speaker

Sūta (deduced: exhortative phalaśruti style in māhātmya sections)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (context)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee respectfully offering a palm-leaf or bound manuscript of the māhātmya to a seated Brāhmaṇa; above, a symbolic ladder to svarga marked by syllables/letters.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇa
• Svarga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sharing dharma-teachings (especially as a gift) is a powerful form of merit that yields long-lasting heavenly reward.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Within this adhyāya, the underlying māhātmya concerns Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dāna: giving the māhātmya (text/recitation material) to a Brāhmaṇa.