Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 56

Devanagari script

तस्मात्कुरु सुरश्रेष्ठ पुनरेव यथा पुरा । मदीयभवने कृत्स्नो व्यवहारः प्रजायते

Transliteration

tasmātkuru suraśreṣṭha punareva yathā purā | madīyabhavane kṛtsno vyavahāraḥ prajāyate

Translation

तस्मात् हे सुरश्रेष्ठ, पुनरेव यथा पुरा कुरु; यथा मदीयभवने कृत्स्नो व्यवहारः पुनः प्रजायते।

Word by Word

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तस्मात् — सर्वनाम-तद्, पञ्चमी-एकवचन (Ablative/5th sg) प्रयुक्तम् अव्ययवत् ‘therefore/from that’

• kuru: do; make
• kuru: Kriya (Command/आज्ञा)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• suraśreṣṭha: O best of gods
• suraśreṣṭha: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘सुराणां श्रेष्ठः’); पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• punar: again
• punar: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रिया-विशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punar (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Adverb) — ‘again’

• eva: indeed; just
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Emphatic particle) — ‘indeed/just’

• yathā: as
• yathā: Sambandha (Comparison/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Comparative conjunction) — ‘as’

• purā: formerly
• purā: Kāla (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Adverb of time) — ‘formerly’

• madīya-bhavane: in my abode/house
• madīya-bhavane: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madīya (प्रातिपदिक) + bhavana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘मम भवानम्’/‘मदीयं भवानम्’); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन

• kṛtsnaḥ: entire; whole
• kṛtsnaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛtsna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• vyavahāraḥ: judicial order/transaction; proper conduct
• vyavahāraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyavahāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• prajāyate: comes into being; arises
• prajāyate: Kriya (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + √jan (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), आत्मनेपद

Speaker

Yama (Vaivasvata)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yama, still bowed, requests Brahmā to reinstate the full judicial process in Yamaloka; Brahmā listens gravely, holding a manuscript/veda, signaling re-establishment of cosmic procedure.

Characters & Entities

• Yama (Vaivasvata)
• Brahmā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Cosmic governance is purposeful; when its function disappears, the deity in charge seeks rebalancing under higher divine authority.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The line belongs to Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya (Adhyāya 95); it does not name a particular tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this is a petition within a narrative dialogue.