Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

एवमुक्तस्ततस्तेन इतो दूतेन संयुतः । कुशस्तेन विनिर्यातः सत्वरं द्विजसत्तमाः

Transliteration

evamuktastatastena ito dūtena saṃyutaḥ | kuśastena viniryātaḥ satvaraṃ dvijasattamāḥ

Translation

ครั้นได้ฟังดังนั้น พระราชากุศะก็เสด็จออกไปทันทีพร้อมทูตนั้น โอ้พราหมณ์ผู้ประเสริฐยิ่ง

Word by Word

• evam: thus
• evam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक क्रियाविशेषण

• uktaḥ: (being) addressed
• uktaḥ: Kriyā (Participial predicate/कृदन्त-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (वच् धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; "having been spoken to/ addressed"

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Temporal adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; ततः = तस्मात्/अनन्तरम् (then/thereupon)

• tena: by him
• tena: Karaṇa (Instrument/कर्ता-प्रेरकसाधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental); एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• itaḥ: from here
• itaḥ: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: itaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (from here)

• dūtena: with the messenger
• dūtena: Sahakārī/Karaṇa (Accompaniment/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental); एकवचन

• saṃyutaḥ: accompanied
• saṃyutaḥ: Kriyā (Participial predicate/कृदन्त-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√yuj (युज् धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; "joined/ accompanied"

• kuśaḥ: Kuśa
• kuśaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kuśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन

• tena: with him
• tena: Saha (Accompaniment/सह)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental); एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• viniryātaḥ: set out
• viniryātaḥ: Kriyā (Participial predicate/कृदन्त-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-nis-√yā (या धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; "gone out/ set forth"

• satvaram: quickly
• satvaram: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: satvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् क्रियाविशेषण (quickly)

• dvija-sattamāḥ: O best of the twice-born
• dvija-sattamāḥ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + sattama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन/प्रथमा बहुवचन (contextual vocative addressing the audience); तत्पुरुष: dvijānāṃ sattamāḥ (best of the twice-born)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic storyteller voice within Tīrthamāhātmya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Rāmeśvara/Setu-kṣetra (destination implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇa sages (explicitly addressed: ‘dvijasattamāḥ’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: King Kuśa departs immediately with the messenger; brāhmaṇas are addressed as witnesses, giving the scene a formal, dharma-validated tone.

Characters & Entities

• Kuśa
• Dūta (messenger)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma requires prompt action—especially from rulers—when suffering beings seek lawful relief.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader episode is set in the Rāmeśvara tīrtha-mahātmya framework.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; it narrates swift departure in response to a petition connected to a sacred place.