Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 30

Devanagari script

कच्चित्पुराणशास्त्राणि प्रणीतानि जनेश्वरैः । संलेख्याक्षररम्याणि साधुभ्यः संप्रयच्छसि

Transliteration

kaccitpurāṇaśāstrāṇi praṇītāni janeśvaraiḥ | saṃlekhyākṣararamyāṇi sādhubhyaḥ saṃprayacchasi

Translation

ഹേ സദ്ഭാഗ്യവതീ, ജനേശ്വരന്മാർ രചിച്ച പുരാണശാസ്ത്രങ്ങൾ മനോഹരമായ അക്ഷരങ്ങളിൽ എഴുതി ഒരുക്കി ഭക്തിയോടെ സാദുക്കൾക്ക് ദാനമായി നൽകുമോ?

Word by Word

• कच्चित्: is it the case that...?
• कच्चित्: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कच्चित् (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक-अव्यय (interrogative particle: 'whether?')

• पुराणशास्त्राणि: Purāṇa scriptures
• पुराणशास्त्राणि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुराण (प्रातिपदिक) + शास्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (पुराणं च तत् शास्त्रं)

• प्रणीतानि: composed / authored
• प्रणीतानि: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-नी (धातु)
• Form: कर्मणि-भूतकृदन्त; क्त-प्रत्यय (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचन (agreeing with 'पुराणशास्त्राणि')

• जनेश्वरैः: by the lords of people (kings)
• जनेश्वरैः: Karana (Instrument/Agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जन-ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया विभक्ति (Instrumental), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (जनानाम् ईश्वराः)

• संलेख्य: having copied/written
• संलेख्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-लिख् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); 'having written/copied'

• अक्षररम्याणि: beautiful in letters (well-written)
• अक्षररम्याणि: Visheshana (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्षर (प्रातिपदिक) + रम्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying 'पुराणशास्त्राणि'); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (अक्षरैः रम्याणि / अक्षराणां रम्याणि)

• साधुभ्यः: to the good people / saints
• साधुभ्यः: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साधु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी विभक्ति (Dative), बहुवचन

• संप्रयच्छसि: you give / you bestow
• संप्रयच्छसि: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-प्र-यम्/यच्छ् (धातु: यम्, 'to give'—प्रयच्छति)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present); मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Unspecified (Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya context; didactic dialogue, likely an elder/authority instructing a lady)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A noble lady addressed as ‘janeśvarā’/‘sādhvī’ in context

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A scribe carefully writing on palm-leaf or birch-bark with stylus; finished manuscript wrapped in cloth; the donor presents it to a seated sadhu/ācārya in a temple library or maṭha, with reverent posture.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

That gifting sacred knowledge—especially Purāṇic texts prepared with care—is a high form of dāna that supports dharma and earns puṇya.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse itself stresses tīrtha-style merit through dharmic conduct, but does not name a specific tīrtha in this line.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śāstra-dāna: copying/writing scriptures neatly and donating them to sādhus (virtuous persons).