Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 129

Devanagari script

कोटितीर्थस्य माहात्म्यं महीनगरकस्य च । शृणोति श्रावयेद्यस्तु ब्रह्मभूयाय कल्पते

Transliteration

koṭitīrthasya māhātmyaṃ mahīnagarakasya ca | śṛṇoti śrāvayedyastu brahmabhūyāya kalpate

Translation

А тот, кто слушает или велит слушать махатмью Котитиртхи и Махинагараки, становится достоин брахма-бхуйи — достижения состояния Брахмана.

Word by Word

• koṭi-tīrthasya: of Koṭitīrtha
• koṭi-tīrthasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (कोटीनां तीर्थम् / कोटि-नामकं तीर्थम्)

• māhātmyam: the glory
• māhātmyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māhātmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• mahī-nagarakasya: of Mahīnagaraka
• mahī-nagarakasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक) + nagaraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (मही-नगरकम्)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• śṛṇoti: hears
• śṛṇoti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (श्रु श्रवणे)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचन

• śrāvayet: (or) makes (others) hear
• śrāvayet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (श्रु श्रवणे) + णिच् (causative)
• Form: लोट्/विधिलिङ्-प्राय (injunctive/optative sense), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचन; णिजन्त

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• tu: indeed, however
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; अवधारण/विरोध (emphatic/contrast particle)

• brahma-bhūyāya: for Brahmanhood / for attaining Brahman-state
• brahma-bhūyāya: Sampradana (Purpose/recipient—चतुर्थी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + bhūya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/चतुर्थी), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (ब्रह्मणः भूयः/ब्रह्मत्वम्)

• kalpate: is fit, becomes destined
• kalpate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kḷp (कॢप् समर्थने/कल्पने)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचन

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) addressing sages/brāhmaṇas

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Koṭitīrtha; Mahīnagaraka

Type: tirtha

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two sacred sites symbolized: a vast tīrtha with countless (koṭi) lamps/lingas and a fortified ‘nagaraka’ with a central shrine; a recitation scene bridges them, with a luminous Brahman-like radiance above listeners’ heads.

Characters & Entities

• Koṭitīrtha
• Mahīnagaraka
• Brahmabhūya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Engagement with tīrtha-māhātmya through hearing and teaching is linked not only to merit but to the highest spiritual aim (brahmabhūya).

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Koṭitīrtha and Mahīnagaraka.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śravaṇa (listening) and śrāvayati (having it recited/teaching it) of the māhātmya.