Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

एवं लब्धवरः सोऽथ गणनाथो द्विजोत्तमाः । देवकृत्यपरो नित्यं चक्रे विघ्नानि भूतले

Transliteration

evaṃ labdhavaraḥ so'tha gaṇanātho dvijottamāḥ | devakṛtyaparo nityaṃ cakre vighnāni bhūtale

Translation

ఇలా వరప్రాప్తుడైన ఆ గణనాథుడు—ఓ ద్విజోత్తమా—దేవకార్యాలలో నిత్యం నిమగ్నుడై, ఆపై భూతలమందు విఘ్నాలను సృష్టించాడు.

Word by Word

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb: ‘thus’)

• लब्धवरः: having obtained a boon
• लब्धवरः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लब्ध (कृदन्त; √लभ्) + वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (‘लब्धः वरः येन’/‘लब्ध-वर’); भूतकृदन्त-विशेषणम्; Masculine, Nominative singular

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम; Masculine, Nominative singular

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle: then/now)

• गणनाथः: Gaṇanātha (lord of the gaṇas)
• गणनाथः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गण + नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (‘गणानां नाथः’); Masculine, Nominative singular

• द्विजोत्तमाः: O best of the twice-born (Brahmins)
• द्विजोत्तमाः: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (‘उत्तमाः द्विजाः’); Masculine, Nominative plural; संबोधनार्थेऽपि सम्भवः (O best Brahmins)

• देवकृत्यपरः: devoted to the duties of the gods
• देवकृत्यपरः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: देव + कृत्य + पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (‘देवकृत्ये परः’ = devoted to divine duties); Masculine, Nominative singular

• नित्यम्: always
• नित्यम्: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (अव्ययवत्)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb: always)

• चक्रे: made, caused
• चक्रे: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपदम्; ‘he did/made’

• विघ्नानि: obstacles
• विघ्नानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विघ्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (प्रयोगे नपुंसकवत्), द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; Accusative plural

• भूतले: on the earth, on the ground
• भूतले: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूतल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Neuter, Locative singular

Speaker

Unspecified narrator addressing brāhmaṇas (dvijottamāḥ) (deduced: a Purāṇic narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvijoत्तमाः (addressed audience of brāhmaṇas)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Gaṇanātha (Gaṇeśa) newly empowered, turning toward the earth, sending forth symbolic ‘vighnas’—knots, barriers, or guardian-like thresholds—while remaining serene and dutiful to deva-kārya.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṇanātha (Gaṇeśa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Obstacles can be divinely purposed—meant to guide beings toward right action and proper worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader passage belongs to Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya (Adhyāya 142) describing a holy kṣetra; the exact toponym is not present in the provided lines.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly supports the practice of invoking Gaṇeśa for vighna-nāśa (removal of obstacles), though not yet stated as a formal rule here.