Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 6

Devanagari script

नंदिन्युवाच । यदि पृच्छसि मां पुत्र स्तनपानं समाचर । येन तृप्तस्य ते सर्वं वृत्तांतं तद्वदाम्यहम्

Transliteration

naṃdinyuvāca | yadi pṛcchasi māṃ putra stanapānaṃ samācara | yena tṛptasya te sarvaṃ vṛttāṃtaṃ tadvadāmyaham

Translation

നന്ദിനി പറഞ്ഞു—മകനേ, നീ എന്നോടു ചോദിക്കുകയാണെങ്കിൽ ആദ്യം സ്തനപാനം ചെയ്യുക. നീ തൃപ്തനായ ശേഷം മുഴുവൻ വൃത്താന്തവും ഞാൻ പറയും.

Word by Word

• नन्दिनी: Nandinī
• नन्दिनी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नन्दिनी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• यदि: if
• यदि: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; शर्तसूचक-सम्बन्धबोधक (conditional particle)

• पृच्छसि: you ask
• पृच्छसि: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्रच्छ् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), मध्यम-पुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन

• माम्: me
• माम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• पुत्र: O son
• पुत्र: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन

• स्तनपानम्: suckling/milk-drinking
• स्तनपानम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्तन + पान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (स्तनस्य पानम्)

• समाचर: do; perform
• समाचर: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + आ + चर् (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), मध्यम-पुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन

• येन: by which
• येन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग-रूप (contextual)

• तृप्तस्य: of (one who is) satisfied
• तृप्तस्य: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तृप्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; तृप् धातोः क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle)

• ते: your
• ते: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• सर्वम्: everything
• सर्वम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• वृत्तान्तम्: account; narrative
• वृत्तान्तम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृत्तान्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• वदामि: I tell
• वदामि: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वद् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), उत्तम-पुरुष (1st person), एकवचन

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

Speaker

Nandinī

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gokula (allusive)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: putra (son)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A mother (Nandinī) gently instructs her son to nurse first; the setting is a simple hermitage/forest-edge domestic scene, emphasizing vātsalya before the unfolding of a perilous forest episode.

Characters & Entities

• Nandinī
• son (putra/vatsa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is taught with compassion—care and nourishment precede the transmission of difficult truth.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader passage belongs to a tīrtha-māhātmya chapter; this line focuses on maternal conduct, not a named site.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a domestic, ethical instruction within the sacred narrative.