Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 74

Devanagari script

सैन्यसंघं समुत्तीर्य्य बभ्राम क्षेत्रमध्यतः । तत्र तीर्थेषु सर्वेषु देवतायतनेषु च

Transliteration

sainyasaṃghaṃ samuttīryya babhrāma kṣetramadhyataḥ | tatra tīrtheṣu sarveṣu devatāyataneṣu ca

Translation

సైన్యసమూహాన్ని అవతలికి దాటించి, అతడు క్షేత్ర మధ్యభాగంలో సంచరించాడు; అక్కడి సమస్త తీర్థాలకూ, దేవతాలయాలకూ వెళ్లాడు।

Word by Word

• सैन्यसंघम्: the troop/host of the army
• सैन्यसंघम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सैन्य + संघ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सैन्यस्य संघः)

• समुत्तीर्य: having crossed/ascended
• समुत्तीर्य: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/अनुबन्ध)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-उत्-तॄ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्यय; ‘having crossed/come up’

• बभ्राम: wandered/roamed
• बभ्राम: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• क्षेत्रमध्यतः: from/through the middle of the field
• क्षेत्रमध्यतः: Adhikarana (Location/देश)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्षेत्र + मध्य + तः (अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त) — ‘मध्यतः’ = from the middle; समासः ‘क्षेत्रस्य मध्यतः’ (ablatival sense)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक adverb) — ‘there’

• तीर्थेषु: at the sacred fords/holy places
• तीर्थेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), बहुवचन

• सर्वेषु: in all
• सर्वेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), बहुवचन; ‘तीर्थेषु’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• देवतायतनेषु: in the temples/shrines of deities
• देवतायतनेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता + आयतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (देवतायाः आयतनम्)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय-bodhaka conjunction)

Speaker

Narratorial voice (Purāṇic narrator; speaker not explicit in this snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Harikṣetra tīrtha-samūha (all tīrthas within the kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Rāma’s army crosses over and then spreads through the sacred region: banners, elephants/horses, sages guiding; the route passes ponds/ghāṭas and small temples where brief darśanas occur.

Characters & Entities

• Rāma
• Tīrthas (plural)
• Devatāyatanas (temples)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is not random wandering; it is a deliberate traversal of tīrthas and temples, honoring the sacred landscape.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader kṣetra of Dharmāraṇya/Harikṣetra is highlighted as containing many tīrthas and deity-shrines.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Systematic tīrtha-darśana and devatā-darśana—visiting all sacred fords and temples within the kṣetra.