Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

क एष पिप्पलादस्तु कस्य पुत्रो वदस्व नः । किमर्थं स्थापितं लिंगं क्षेत्रे तत्र महात्मना

Transliteration

ka eṣa pippalādastu kasya putro vadasva naḥ | kimarthaṃ sthāpitaṃ liṃgaṃ kṣetre tatra mahātmanā

Translation

ปิปปลาทะผู้นี้คือผู้ใด และเป็นบุตรของใคร จงบอกแก่เราเถิด และมหาตมะผู้นั้นด้วยเหตุใดจึงสถาปนาลึงค์ไว้ในเกษตรอันศักดิ์สิทธิ์ ณ ที่นั้น

Word by Word

• kaḥ: who
• kaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्ता/प्रश्न

• eṣaḥ: this
• eṣaḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; निर्देश (demonstrative)

• pippalādaḥ: Pippalāda
• pippalādaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pippalāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्ता/विषय

• tu: indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle)

• kasya: of whom
• kasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; सम्बन्ध (genitive question)

• putraḥ: son
• putraḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: putra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्ता/विधेय

• vadasva: tell (us)
• vadasva: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vad (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• naḥ: to us
• naḥ: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक सर्वनाम)
• Form: चतुर्थी बहुवचन (enclitic); सम्प्रदान

• kim-artham: for what reason; why
• kim-artham: Sambandha (Reason/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाववत् प्रश्न-अव्यय (हेतु-प्रश्न adverb)

• sthāpitam: installed
• sthāpitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √sthā (धातु) (णिच् causative)
• Form: क्त (PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; liṅgam-विशेषण

• liṅgam: liṅga
• liṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विषय/कर्म

• kṣetre: in the sacred field
• kṣetre: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; अधिकरणे

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक)

• mahātmanā: by the great-souled one
• mahātmanā: Karana (Agent/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; करण/कर्तृ-निर्देश (agent)

Speaker

Ṛṣis/Sages (deduced from continuation of their question in 174.3)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kaṃsāreśvara (contextual)

Type: temple

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sūta

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sages leaning forward with questioning gestures; Sūta poised to answer; a faint background vignette of an ascetic youth (Pippalāda) under a tree, suggesting forthcoming backstory.

Characters & Entities

• Pippalāda
• Liṅga
• Kṣetra (holy field)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic dharma values lineage and intention: sacred acts like liṅga-sthāpana are understood through the installer’s identity and purpose.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The ‘kṣetra’ is the Śrīhāṭakeśvara-kṣetra setting of the Tīrthamāhātmya in Nāgara Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this verse is a request for the backstory behind the installation.