Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

स्वर्गात्त्रिदशलक्षाणि सप्ततिश्च महीतलात् । पातालाद्विंशलक्षाणि स्मृतान्यभ्यागतानि च

Transliteration

svargāttridaśalakṣāṇi saptatiśca mahītalāt | pātālādviṃśalakṣāṇi smṛtānyabhyāgatāni ca

Translation

ஸ்வர்கத்திலிருந்து முப்பது லட்சம், பூமித்தளத்திலிருந்து எழுபது, பாதாளத்திலிருந்து இருபது லட்சம்—இவ்வாறு ஸ்மரிக்கப்பட்ட தீர்த்தங்கள் வெளிப்பட்டு ஒன்றுகூடியன.

Word by Word

• svargāt: from heaven
• svargāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svarga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/पञ्चमी), एकवचन — ‘स्वर्गात्’ = from heaven

• tridaśa-lakṣāṇi: thirty lakhs
• tridaśa-lakṣāṇi: Karta (of implied ‘āgatāni’) / Count phrase
• Type: Noun
• Root: tridaśa (प्रातिपदिक) + lakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन — ‘त्रिदशलक्षाणि’ = thirty lakhs

• saptatiḥ: seventy
• saptatiḥ: Karta (of implied ‘āgatāni’) / Count phrase
• Type: Noun
• Root: saptati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — ‘सप्ततिः’ = seventy

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक) — and

• mahī-talāt: from the earth
• mahī-talāt: Apadana (Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक) + tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन — ‘महीतलात्’ = from the earth’s surface

• pātālāt: from Pātāla
• pātālāt: Apadana (Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन — ‘पातालात्’ = from the netherworld

• viṃśa-lakṣāṇi: twenty lakhs
• viṃśa-lakṣāṇi: Karta (of implied ‘āgatāni’) / Count phrase
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṃśa (प्रातिपदिक) + lakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन — ‘विंशलक्षाणि’ = twenty lakhs

• smṛtāni: having been remembered
• smṛtāni: Karta (predicate with abhyāgatāni)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: smṛ (धातु) + ta (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन — ‘स्मृतानि’ = remembered

• abhyāgatāni: came, arrived
• abhyāgatāni: Karta (predicate; implied subject = tīrthāni)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: abhi-ā-√gam (धातु) + ta (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन — ‘अभ्यागतानि’ = come near/arrived

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक) — and

Speaker

Nārada

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Tri-loka Koṭitīrtha-sammelana (assembly of remembered tīrthas)

Type: sangam

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Kuru-śreṣṭha (royal interlocutor)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A grand procession of tīrtha-personifications arrives: celestial streams descending like silver ribbons, earthly rivers flowing in, and subterranean waters rising; they gather in concentric circles around the chosen locus.

Characters & Entities

• Svarga
• Mahītala (Earth)
• Pātāla
• Koṭitīrthas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is cosmic in scope: tīrthas are envisioned as living powers spanning all realms.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Koṭitīrtha, depicted as capable of drawing innumerable tīrthas from multiple worlds.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it quantifies the assembled tīrthas to magnify the site’s greatness.