Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 7

Devanagari script

शिरस्था तुलसी यस्य न याम्यैरनुभूयते । मुखस्था तुलसी यस्य निर्वाणपददायिनी

Transliteration

śirasthā tulasī yasya na yāmyairanubhūyate | mukhasthā tulasī yasya nirvāṇapadadāyinī

Translation

Sesiapa yang Tulasī berada di atas kepalanya tidak akan disentuh para utusan Yama. Dan sesiapa yang Tulasī berada di dalam mulutnya, dianugerahi kedudukan nirvāṇa, yakni pembebasan.

Word by Word

• शिरःस्था: situated on the head
• शिरःस्था: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शिरस् (प्रातिपदिक) + स्था (कृदन्त, √स्था धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कृदन्त-विशेषण (स्था-प्रत्ययान्त), ‘शिरसि स्थिता’ इति (locative-tatpurusha)

• तुलसी: Tulasi (holy basil)
• तुलसी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तुलसी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• यस्य: of whom/whose
• यस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सम्बन्धे (genitive)

• न: not
• न: Nishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• याम्यैः: by Yama’s servants (messengers of death)
• याम्यैः: Karana (Instrument/Agent in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: याम्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; करण/सहकारक-प्रयोग (instrumental/agent in passive)

• अनुभूयते: is experienced/undergone
• अनुभूयते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु) उपसर्गः अनु-
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• मुखस्था: situated in the mouth
• मुखस्था: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मुख (प्रातिपदिक) + स्था (कृदन्त, √स्था धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘मुखे स्थिता’ इति (locative-tatpurusha)

• तुलसी: Tulasi
• तुलसी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तुलसी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• यस्य: of whom/whose
• यस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सम्बन्धे

• निर्वाणपददायिनी: bestowing the state/abode of liberation
• निर्वाणपददायिनी: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर्वाण (प्रातिपदिक) + पद (प्रातिपदिक) + दायिनी (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक, √दा धातु, णिनि-प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘निर्वाणस्य पदं ददाति’ इति (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/उपपद-समास)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from section context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A serene deathbed scene: Tulasi leaf placed on the crown of the head; another at the lips; Yama’s messengers stand powerless at a distance; a luminous gateway of liberation opens above.

Characters & Entities

• Tulasī
• Yama (yāmya)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tulasī is upheld as a liberating sacramental presence, protecting from fear of death and directing the soul toward mokṣa.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No geographic tīrtha is named; the verse treats Tulasī as a sanctifying ‘mobile tīrtha’ especially relevant at life’s end.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Placing Tulasī on the head and in the mouth—commonly associated with devotional practice and end-of-life/antyeṣṭi customs—is praised.