Skanda Purana — Vishnu Khanda, Shloka 6

Devanagari script

हंससारसचक्राह्व विहंगममनोहरम् । तटांतविटपोल्लासि पतत्त्रिगणसंकुलम्

Transliteration

haṃsasārasacakrāhva vihaṃgamamanoharam | taṭāṃtaviṭapollāsi patattrigaṇasaṃkulam

Translation

അത് ഹംസം, സാരസം, ചക്രാഹ്വം മുതലായ പക്ഷികളാൽ മനോഹരമായിരുന്നു; തീരങ്ങളിൽ പടർന്ന കൊമ്പുകൾ തിളങ്ങി, കരയൊട്ടാകെ പക്ഷിസമൂഹങ്ങൾ നിറഞ്ഞിരുന്നു।

Word by Word

• हंस-सारस-चक्राह्व: (having) swans, cranes and cakrāhva birds
• हंस-सारस-चक्राह्व: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हंस (प्रातिपदिक) + सारस (प्रातिपदिक) + चक्राह्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग-प्राय, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन (समस्तपदस्य); समासः—द्वन्द्वः (इतरद्वन्द्वः: हंसाश्च सारसाश्च चक्राह्वाश्च)

• विहंगम-मनोहरम्: delightful to birds
• विहंगम-मनोहरम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विहंगम (प्रातिपदिक) + मनोहर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (षष्ठी: ‘विहंगमानां मनोहरम्’)

• तट-अन्त-विटप-उल्लासि: bright/beautiful with trees at the bank-ends
• तट-अन्त-विटप-उल्लासि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तट (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक) + विटप (प्रातिपदिक) + उल्लासिन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘उल्लासि’ = उल्लासिन्-रूप)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (सप्तमी/षष्ठीभावः: ‘तटान्ते विटपैः उल्लासि’)

• पतत्त्रि-गण-संकुलम्: thronged with flocks of birds
• पतत्त्रि-गण-संकुलम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पतत्त्रि (प्रातिपदिक) + गण (प्रातिपदिक) + संकुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (तृतीया/षष्ठीभावः: ‘पतत्त्रिगणैः संकुलम्’)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; before the explicit dialogue begins)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Brahma-kuṇḍa

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The sacred tank teems with swans, sārasas, and cakrāhvas; the banks glow with spreading tree-boughs, and the shore is crowded with flocks of birds—an auspicious, living sanctuary.

Characters & Entities

• Ayodhyā
• Kuṇḍa/Saras (sacred pond)
• Haṃsa
• Cakrāhva

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred places are portrayed as harmonizing dharma and nature—purity is mirrored by auspicious, serene surroundings.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Ayodhyā kuṇḍa/saras being praised in Adhyāya 2 of Ayodhyāmāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse continues the māhātmya-style depiction that supports later prescriptions like snāna and dāna.