Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 25

Devanagari script

एतस्मिन्नंतरे प्राप्ता रंभा तत्र वराप्सराः । सलिलाशयतीरस्थो जाबालिर्यत्र तिष्ठति

Transliteration

etasminnaṃtare prāptā raṃbhā tatra varāpsarāḥ | salilāśayatīrastho jābāliryatra tiṣṭhati

Translation

ଏହି ମଧ୍ୟବେଳେ ସେଠାକୁ ଶ୍ରେଷ୍ଠ ଅପ୍ସରା ରମ୍ଭା ଆସି ପହଞ୍ଚିଲା—ଯେଉଁଠି ଜଳାଶୟର ତଟରେ ଜାବାଳି ମୁନି ରହୁଥିଲେ ସେଇ ସ୍ଥାନରେ।

Word by Word

• etasmin: in this
• etasmin: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन — Locative singular (in this)

• antare: in the meantime, in the interval
• antare: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन — Locative singular; ‘in the interval/meanwhile’

• prāptā: arrived
• prāptā: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √prāp (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle/भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन — ‘having arrived/arrived’

• raṃbhā: Rambhā
• raṃbhā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: raṃbhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — Nominative singular (proper noun)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (adverb of place)

• varāpsarāḥ: excellent apsarases (celestial nymphs)
• varāpsarāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara-apsaras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन — Nominative plural; समासः (कर्मधारय) = varā (श्रेष्ठा) + apsarāḥ

• salilāśaya-tīra-sthaḥ: standing on the bank of the water-reservoir
• salilāśaya-tīra-sthaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: salila-āśaya-tīra-stha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — Nominative singular; समासः (तत्पुरुष) = salilāśaya (जलाशय) + tīra (तीर) + stha (स्थित)

• jābāliḥ: Jābāli
• jābāliḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jābāli (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — Nominative singular (proper noun)

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्बन्ध/देशवाचक अव्यय (relative adverb: where)

• tiṣṭhati: stands, stays
• tiṣṭhati: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present/वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — 3rd person singular; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Narrator (contextual)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Rambhā, radiant and celestial, arrives at a lotus-lined reservoir; on the bank sits Jābāli in an austere āśrama setting, absorbed in practice.

Characters & Entities

• Rambhā
• Apsaras
• Jābāli
• Salilāśaya (pond/lake)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holy waters and holy persons form a powerful setting where virtue is tested; approaching sacred banks calls for heightened discipline.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A sacred water-reservoir/pond-bank associated with sage Jābāli is indicated; the proper tīrtha name is not specified in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Not directly; the verse sets the scene at a sacred waterside location.