Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 20

Devanagari script

सनूपुररवोद्दामां हारकेयूरमण्डिताम् । तादृशीं नर्मदां देवीं स्वयं स्त्रीरूपधारिणीम्

Transliteration

sanūpuraravoddāmāṃ hārakeyūramaṇḍitām | tādṛśīṃ narmadāṃ devīṃ svayaṃ strīrūpadhāriṇīm

Translation

जिच्या नूपुरांचा नाद प्रचंड होता, जी हार व केयूरांनी अलंकृत होती—अशी नर्मदा देवी स्वतः स्त्रीरूप धारण करून प्रकट झाली होती।

Word by Word

• sa-nūpura-rava-uddāmām: having a loud sound of anklets
• sa-nūpura-rava-uddāmām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + nūpura (प्रातिपदिक) + rava (प्रातिपदिक) + uddāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (नूपुर-रवेन उद्दामा = whose anklet-sound is loud)

• hāra-keyūra-maṇḍitām: adorned with necklaces and armlets
• hāra-keyūra-maṇḍitām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hāra (प्रातिपदिक) + keyūra (प्रातिपदिक) + maṇḍita (कृदन्त; √maṇḍ (मण्ड्) + क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त विशेषण; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (हार-केयूरैः मण्डिता)

• tādṛśīm: such; of that kind
• tādṛśīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tādṛś (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• narmadām: Narmadā (the river-goddess)
• narmadām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: narmadā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• devīm: goddess
• devīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अप्पोज़िशन/विशेष्य-विशेषणभावः (narmadām devīm)

• svayam: herself; personally
• svayam: Sambandha/Emphasis (सम्बन्ध/निपातार्थ)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: svayam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/निपात (emphatic: ‘herself’)

• strī-rūpa-dhāriṇīm: assuming a woman’s form
• strī-rūpa-dhāriṇīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक) + rūpa (प्रातिपदिक) + dhāriṇī (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √dhṛ (धृ) + णिनि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; णिनि-प्रत्ययान्त (धारिणी) विशेषण; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (स्त्रीरूपं धारयति)

Speaker

Narrator (a ṛṣi/purāṇic speaker addressing a king; exact speaker not in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā/Narmadā

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (rājan)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On a luminous riverbank, Narmadā appears as a woman; anklets resound, and she is richly adorned with necklace and armlets, her presence blending water-sheen with divine femininity.

Characters & Entities

• Narmadā Devī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divinity can take accessible form for devotees—sacred rivers are Devī’s compassionate embodiment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Narmadā (Revā) as a goddess-tīrtha manifesting directly to the seer.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is prescribed in this verse.