Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

अथ दृष्टं तया क्षेत्रं हाटकेश्वरजं महत् । तपस्विभिः समाकीर्णं चित्ताह्लादकरं परम्

Transliteration

atha dṛṣṭaṃ tayā kṣetraṃ hāṭakeśvarajaṃ mahat | tapasvibhiḥ samākīrṇaṃ cittāhlādakaraṃ param

Translation

അപ്പോൾ അവൾ ഹാടകേശ്വരനോടു ബന്ധപ്പെട്ട മഹത്തായ ക്ഷേത്രഭൂമി കണ്ടു; അത് തപസ്വികളാൽ നിറഞ്ഞതും മനസ്സിനെ പരമമായി ആനന്ദിപ്പിക്കുന്നതുമായിരുന്നു।

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (discourse particle: ‘then/now’)

• dṛṣṭam: seen
• dṛṣṭam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dṛś (धातु) + ta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; (कर्मणि-भावे) ‘seen’

• tayā: by her
• tayā: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• kṣetram: the sacred place/field
• kṣetram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• hāṭakeśvara-jam: born of/connected with Hāṭakeśvara
• hāṭakeśvara-jam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hāṭakeśvara + ja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पञ्चमी/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषार्थे (hāṭakeśvarāt/jasya jātaṃ); नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण

• mahat: great
• mahat: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण

• tapasvibhiḥ: by/with ascetics
• tapasvibhiḥ: Karaṇa/Hetu (Instrument/association/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapasvin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन

• samākīrṇam: filled, crowded
• samākīrṇam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam + ā + kṝ (धातु) + ta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण

• citta-āhlāda-karam: delighting the mind
• citta-āhlāda-karam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: citta + āhlāda + kara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (cittasya āhlādaṃ karoti); नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण

• param: supreme, excellent
• param: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण

Speaker

Narrator (Sūta, by continuity of the adhyāya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and sages (frame implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A luminous sacred grove/field with a Śiva shrine of Hāṭakeśvara; many ascetics seated in meditation; the maiden arrives at the threshold, visibly relieved.

Characters & Entities

• Hāṭakeśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A true tīrtha is recognized by its sanctity, its tapasvīs, and its power to uplift the mind—hallmarks of a place where dharma becomes tangible.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (the sacred region of Hāṭakeśvara).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse functions as a tīrtha-description (kṣetra-darśana) praising the site’s spiritual atmosphere.