Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

ततः सोऽपि समायातस्तस्य स्वप्ने महीपतेः । तेनैव प्रेतरूपेण दुःखेन महता वृतः

Transliteration

tataḥ so'pi samāyātastasya svapne mahīpateḥ | tenaiva pretarūpeṇa duḥkhena mahatā vṛtaḥ

Translation

ତାପରେ ସେ ମଧ୍ୟ ସେହି ରାଜାଙ୍କ ସ୍ୱପ୍ନରେ ଆସିଲା—ସେଇ ପ୍ରେତରୂପରେ, ଭୟଙ୍କର ଦୁଃଖରେ ଆବୃତ ହୋଇ।

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: सम्बन्ध/काल-निर्देश
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, काल/अनुक्रमवाचक (temporal/sequence adverb)

• सः: he
• सः: कर्ता (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• अपि: also
• अपि: समुच्चय/निपात (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (particle) — ‘also/even’

• समायातः: having come, arrived
• समायातः: क्रिया-विशेषण/विधेय (Predicative participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + आ + या (धातु) → समायात (कृदन्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त, past passive participle) from √या ‘to go’ with उपसर्ग सम्+आ; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• तस्य: of him
• तस्य: सम्बन्ध (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• स्वप्ने: in (a) dream
• स्वप्ने: अधिकरण (Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्वप्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• महीपतेः: of the king
• महीपतेः: सम्बन्ध (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महीपति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; समासः: मही + पति (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः)

• तेन: by/with that (same)
• तेन: करण/सह (Instrument/association)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• एव: indeed, just
• एव: निपात (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अवधारण-निपात (emphatic particle)

• प्रेतरूपेण: in the form of a preta (departed spirit)
• प्रेतरूपेण: करण/आकार-निर्देश (Instrument of manner/form)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रेत + रूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; समासः: प्रेतस्य रूपम् (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः)

• दुःखेन: with suffering
• दुःखेन: करण (Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुःख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• महता: great
• महता: विशेषण (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying दुःखेन)

• वृतः: enveloped, surrounded
• वृतः: विधेय (Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वृ (धातु) → वृत (कृदन्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त, past passive participle) from √वृ ‘to cover/envelop’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (contextual purāṇic narration within Nāgara Khaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Night scene: the king asleep in a palace chamber; in the dream-space a gaunt preta-form appears, shadowed and trembling, wrapped in an aura of suffering, reaching out as if pleading.

Characters & Entities

• Vidūratha (king, implied by context)
• Preta (departed spirit)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Suffering in the preta-state is portrayed as real and urgent, prompting compassionate dharmic action by the living.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sets up a tīrtha-context but does not yet name the site; the location is specified later in the dialogue.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly in this verse; it introduces the dream-vision that leads to a later prescription.