Skanda Purana — Vishnu Khanda, Shloka 11

Devanagari script

तस्य चक्रहरेर्विप्र महिमा न हि मानवैः । शक्यो वर्णयितुं धीरैरपि बुद्धिमतां वरैः

Transliteration

tasya cakraharervipra mahimā na hi mānavaiḥ | śakyo varṇayituṃ dhīrairapi buddhimatāṃ varaiḥ

Translation

ഹേ വിപ്രാ! ആ ചക്രഹരിയുടെ മഹിമ മനുഷ്യർക്ക് വർണ്ണിക്കാനാവില്ല; ധീരന്മാരും ബുദ്ധിമാന്മാരിൽ ശ്രേഷ്ഠരുമായവർക്കും പോലും അത് യഥാർത്ഥമായി വിവരണം ചെയ്യാൻ കഴിയില്ല।

Word by Word

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन — Genitive singular ‘of him/of that’

• cakra-hareḥ: of Cakrahari
• cakra-hareḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cakra (प्रातिपदिक) + hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास, पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन — Genitive singular

• vipra: O brāhmaṇa
• vipra: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन — Vocative

• mahimā: greatness
• mahimā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahimā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निषेध) — negation

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात; अवधारण/हेतु) — particle ‘indeed/for’

• mānavaiḥ: by humans
• mānavaiḥ: Kartr-karana (Agent-instrument/कर्ता-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mānava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन — Instrumental plural ‘by humans’

• śakyaḥ: possible
• śakyaḥ: Karta (Predicate nominative/विशेष्य-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śakya (प्रातिपदिक; √śak यत्)
• Form: कृदन्त (यत्-प्रत्ययान्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — predicate adjective ‘possible’

• varṇayitum: to describe
• varṇayitum: Karman (Object of possibility/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √varṇ (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive) — ‘to describe’

• dhīraiḥ: by the wise/steadfast
• dhīraiḥ: Kartr-karana (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन — Instrumental plural ‘by the steadfast’

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अपि-निपात) — ‘even/also’

• buddhimatām: of the intelligent
• buddhimatām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: buddhimat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन — Genitive plural ‘of the intelligent’

• varaiḥ: by the best (ones)
• varaiḥ: Kartr-karana (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन — Instrumental plural ‘by the best’

Speaker

Brahmā (deduced; Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa narrative voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Cakrahari

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Vipra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A wise brāhmaṇa stands with folded hands before Cakrahari; the deity’s aura expands beyond the frame, suggesting ‘indescribable greatness’.

Characters & Entities

• Cakrahari

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine glory exceeds human speech; reverent approach is valued over exhaustive description.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Cakrahari shrine within the Ayodhyā sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is stated; the verse functions as a mahimā-statement encouraging devotion and pilgrimage.