Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 66

Devanagari script

अथ रात्र्यां व्यतीतायां पृष्टोऽहं जनकेन च । त्वया पुत्र परिक्षिप्तं नूनं जागेश्वरं क्वचित् । तस्माद्वद प्रयच्छामि तेन ते भक्ष्यमुत्तमम्

Transliteration

atha rātryāṃ vyatītāyāṃ pṛṣṭo'haṃ janakena ca | tvayā putra parikṣiptaṃ nūnaṃ jāgeśvaraṃ kvacit | tasmādvada prayacchāmi tena te bhakṣyamuttamam

Translation

ครั้นราตรีล่วงไป บิดาจึงถามข้าพเจ้า: “ลูกเอ๋ย เจ้าได้ซ่อนชาเคศวรไว้ที่ใดแน่ จงบอกมา แล้วพ่อจะให้ภักษาอันประเสริฐแก่เจ้า”

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Sequencing/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (sequencing particle)

• रात्र्याम्: in the night
• रात्र्याम्: Kala-adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रात्रि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• व्यतीतायाम्: when (it) had passed
• व्यतीतायाम्: Kala-adhikarana (Time circumstance/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि-अति-इ (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP) स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; रात्र्याम् इति अधिकरणे सति (locative absolute)

• पृष्टः: was asked
• पृष्टः: Karta (Patient-subject in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्रच्छ् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अहम् इति कर्तृ-स्थाने (passive)

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• जनकेन: by (my) father
• जनकेन: Kartr (Agent of passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जनक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Karana/Karta (Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• पुत्र: O son
• पुत्र: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन

• परिक्षिप्तम्: thrown/placed
• परिक्षिप्तम्: Karma (Object predicate/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि-क्षिप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; जागेश्वरम् इति कर्म-विशेषणम्

• नूनम्: surely
• नूनम्: Sambandha (Certainty/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नूनम् (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक-अव्यय (particle of certainty)

• जागेश्वरम्: Jāgeśvara (liṅga)
• जागेश्वरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जागेश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• क्वचित्: somewhere
• क्वचित्: Desha-adhikarana (Place circumstance/देशाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्वचित् (अव्यय)
• Form: देश/अनिश्चितार्थक-अव्यय (indefinite adverb)

• तस्मात्: therefore, from that
• तस्मात्: Hetu (Reason/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; हेत्वर्थे (therefore)

• वद: tell
• वद: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वद् (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• प्रयच्छामि: I give
• प्रयच्छामि: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-यम् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• तेन: by that / for that
• तेन: Karana/Hetu (Means/Reason/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; साधन/हेतु-अर्थे

• ते: to you
• ते: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (enclitic)

• भक्ष्यम्: food, something to eat
• भक्ष्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भक्ष्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• उत्तमम्: excellent
• उत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (to भक्ष्यम्)

Speaker

Baka (quoting father)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Jāgeśvara (household-kept liṅga)

Type: temple

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Father (janaka) within the embedded recollection

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Morning after the festival night: the father, worried, questions the child; the shrine space looks disturbed; the father offers a plate of fine sweets as inducement; the child averts gaze, torn between fear and appetite.

Characters & Entities

• Jāgeśvara
• Father (Janaka)
• Food (bhakṣya)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Temptation and concealment around sacred duties are tested; dharma calls for honesty and restoration of what is holy.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Jāgeśvara remains the focal sacred presence in the narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; the context presumes ongoing liṅga-pūjā and the necessity to safeguard worship items.