Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

अथवास्तामियं वार्ता प्रस्तुतं प्रब्रवीम्यहम् । अद्य नीलगिरेस्तस्माद्धरिद्वारसमीपतः

Transliteration

athavāstāmiyaṃ vārtā prastutaṃ prabravīmyaham | adya nīlagirestasmāddharidvārasamīpataḥ

Translation

แต่ขอให้เรื่องนั้นพักไว้ก่อน; เราจักกล่าวสิ่งที่เหมาะแก่กาลบัดนี้ วันนี้ จากภูเขานีลคิรินั้น ใกล้หริทวาระ,

Word by Word

• athavā: or else
• athavā: Sambandha (Discourse/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: athavā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय (disjunctive: or/else)

• āstāṃ: let it be
• āstāṃ: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु: अस्—भुवि/सत्तायाम्)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), परस्मैपद, तृतीयपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular); अव्ययीभाववत् प्रयोग: ‘let it be/never mind’

• iyam: this
• iyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (इदम्-प्रातिपदिक, सर्वनाम)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• vārtā: account/news
• vārtā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vārtā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• prastutam: relevant/at hand
• prastutam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prastuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (qualifier)

• prabravīmi: I tell/declare
• prabravīmi: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra+brū (धातु: ब्रू—वचने)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन (Singular)

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (अस्मद्-प्रातिपदिक, सर्वनाम)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• adya: today
• adya: Adhikaraṇa (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: adya (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• nīla-gireḥ: from Nīlagiri
• nīla-gireḥ: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nīla (प्रातिपदिक) + giri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative) एकवचन (Singular) (form identical to genitive in -eḥ stems); कर्मधारय: नीलः गिरिः = Nīla mountain

• tasmāt: from there/from that
• tasmāt: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद्-प्रातिपदिक, सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन (Singular)

• haridvāra-samīpataḥ: from near Haridvāra
• haridvāra-samīpataḥ: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: haridvāra (प्रातिपदिक) + samīpa (प्रातिपदिक) + tas (तस्-प्रत्यय, अव्यय)
• Form: तसिल्/तस्-अव्यय (ablatival adverb) ‘from near’; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: हरिद्वारस्य समीपतः

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue tradition, Skanda to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Haridvāra (contextual vicinity)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A narrator gestures to begin a new account; behind him rises a blue-tinged hill (Nīlagiri) with the Gaṅgā’s presence implied, and the pilgrim-town aura of Haridvāra nearby.

Characters & Entities

• Nīlagiri
• Haridvāra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It signals a purposeful shift to a relevant sacred account, reflecting how Purāṇas guide seekers through place-based teachings.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Haridvāra is explicitly mentioned, along with Nīlagiri, indicating a tīrtha-geography turn within the narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual is specified in this half-verse; it introduces a location-based narrative.