Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 37

Devanagari script

कदाचिदथ ताद्दिव्यं नूपुरं वीक्ष्य भूपतिः । अस्य नूपुरवर्यस्य तुल्यं वै नूपुरांतरम्

Transliteration

kadācidatha tāddivyaṃ nūpuraṃ vīkṣya bhūpatiḥ | asya nūpuravaryasya tulyaṃ vai nūpurāṃtaram

Translation

กาลหนึ่ง เมื่อทอดพระเนตรนูปุระอันเป็นทิพย์นั้น พระราชาทรงรำพึงในพระทัยว่า “จะมีนูปุระใดเสมอเหมือนนูปุระอันประเสริฐนี้หรือไม่”

Word by Word

• कदाचित्: once/sometime
• कदाचित्: Kala-adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कदाचित् (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अनन्तरबोधक निपात (particle: then/now)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; ‘that’ (anklet)

• दिव्यम्: divine
• दिव्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दिव्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; ‘celestial/wondrous’

• नूपुरम्: anklet
• नूपुरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नूपुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• वीक्ष्य: having seen
• वीक्ष्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वीक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund/absolutive), ‘having seen’

• भूपतिः: the king
• भूपतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भू + पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; समास: भूमेः पतिः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• अस्य: of this
• अस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• नूपुरवर्यस्य: of this excellent anklet
• नूपुरवर्यस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नूपुर + वर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; समास: वर्यं नूपुरम् (श्रेष्ठ-नूपुर)

• तुल्यम्: equal
• तुल्यम्: Visheshana (Predicate qualifier/विधेय-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तुल्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; अत्र विधेय-विशेषण (predicate adjective) ‘equal’

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle/emphasis)

• नूपुरान्तरम्: another anklet
• नूपुरान्तरम्: Karma (Implied object sought/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नूपुर + अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; समास: नूपुरस्य अन्तरम् (अन्यत् नूपुरम्)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic storyteller; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setukṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Naimiṣāraṇya sages

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The king holds or gazes upon the radiant anklet, its gems catching lamplight; his face shows thoughtful wonder as he questions its equal.

Characters & Entities

• the king (bhūpati)
• divya nūpura (divine anklet)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A sacred object inspires reverence and inquiry; wonder can lead to truth-seeking within dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Setu Māhātmya backdrop remains; this verse emphasizes the marvel of a divine object rather than naming a specific tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it depicts royal contemplation upon seeing a divine anklet.