Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

श्रीसूत उवाच । रामनाथं समुद्दिश्य कथां पापविनाशिनीम् । प्रवक्ष्यामि मुनिश्रेष्ठाः शृणुध्वं सुसमाहिताः

Transliteration

śrīsūta uvāca | rāmanāthaṃ samuddiśya kathāṃ pāpavināśinīm | pravakṣyāmi muniśreṣṭhāḥ śṛṇudhvaṃ susamāhitāḥ

Translation

Śrī Sūta berkata: “Dengan Rāmanātha sebagai tema, akan aku kisahkan riwayat yang memusnahkan dosa. Wahai para resi terbaik, dengarlah dengan tumpuan yang teguh.”

Word by Word

• श्रीसूतः: the venerable Sūta
• श्रीसूतः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रीसूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); समासः—श्री + सूत (कर्मधारयः)

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

• रामनाथम्: Rāmanātha (Lord of Rāma)
• रामनाथम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रामनाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; समासः—रामस्य नाथः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• समुद्दिश्य: having referred to / addressing
• समुद्दिश्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सम्-उद्-दिश् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive), ‘having addressed/with reference to’

• कथाम्: a story
• कथाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कथा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• पापविनाशिनीम्: sin-destroying
• पापविनाशिनीम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप-विनाशिनी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifier) ‘कथाम्’; समासः—पापस्य विनाशिनी (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• प्रवक्ष्यामि: I shall narrate
• प्रवक्ष्यामि: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-वच् (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकार (Simple Future), उत्तम-पुरुष (1st person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• मुनिश्रेष्ठाः: O best of sages
• मुनिश्रेष्ठाः: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि-श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); संबोधनार्थे (vocative sense); समासः—मुनीनां श्रेष्ठाः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• शृणुध्वम्: listen
• शृणुध्वम्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), मध्यम-पुरुष (2nd person), बहुवचन, आत्मनेपद

• सुसमाहिताः: well-attentive / well-composed
• सुसमाहिताः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु-समाहित (प्रातिपदिक; सम्-आ-धा धातोः क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) ‘well-collected/attentive’; विशेषणम् (to ‘मुनिश्रेष्ठाः’)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa/Sūta)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Rāmanātha (Rāmeśvara) in Setu-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Munis (muneśreṣṭhāḥ)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sūta, seated in a sacred assembly, begins the Rāmanātha-centered sin-destroying narrative; sages sit attentive with folded hands, indicating concentrated listening.

Characters & Entities

• Sūta
• Rāmanātha (Śiva)
• Sages (Munis)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Attentive listening to sacred narratives centered on the deity is itself a purifier and a form of devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Setu–Rāmanātha/Rāmeśvara (Rāmeśvaram), as the narrative is explicitly centered on Rāmanātha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śravaṇa—listening with concentration to the māhātmya/kathā as a means of pāpa-vināśa.