Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 176

Devanagari script

तस्मात्त्वमत्र तीर्थे च महाकालमिति स्मृतम् । सिद्धिं गतं वृणु भद्रे पतित्वे वरवर्णिनि

Transliteration

tasmāttvamatra tīrthe ca mahākālamiti smṛtam | siddhiṃ gataṃ vṛṇu bhadre patitve varavarṇini

Translation

Kaya nga, dito sa tīrtha na tinatawag na Mahākāla, piliin mo—O pinagpala at marikit—si Mahākāla na ganap na nagkamit ng siddhi bilang iyong asawa.

Word by Word

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu/Prayojana (Reason/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tasmāt (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक ‘tad’)
• Form: तस्मात्-इत्यव्ययीभाववत् निपातः; हेत्वर्थे (ablatival adverb ‘therefore/from that’)

• tvam: you
• tvam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place)

• tīrthe: at the sacred ford/place
• tīrthe: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunctive/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• mahākālam: Mahākāla
• mahākālam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + kāla (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (महान् कालः)

• iti: thus
• iti: Vākyārtha-dyotaka (Quotation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/इत्यर्थक-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• smṛtam: is known/called
• smṛtam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa/Predicate (Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: smṛ (धातु) + ta (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘स्मृत’ = ‘called/known’

• siddhim: success/attainment
• siddhim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: siddhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• gatam: attained
• gatam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gam (धातु) + ta (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; ‘गत’ = ‘gone/attained’ (siddhiṃ विशेषयति)

• vṛṇu: choose
• vṛṇu: Kriyā (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vṛ (धातु; वृणोति)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपदम्

• bhadre: O auspicious one
• bhadre: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhadrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• patitve: in (the matter of) husbandhood
• patitve: Adhikaraṇa (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: patitva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• vara-varṇini: O fair-complexioned one
• vara-varṇini: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara + varṇinī (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (वरः वर्णः यस्याः)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahākāla-tīrtha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At a Śaiva tīrtha, a revered voice urges the maiden to accept Mahākāla—depicted as a radiant ascetic-lord—while the sacred landscape (liṅga, ghāṭa, and river) frames the decision as a rite of passage.

Characters & Entities

• Mahākāla
• Mahākāla Tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Approaching a Śiva-tīrtha and taking refuge in Mahākāla is presented as a dharmic remedy that grants auspicious fulfillment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Mahākāla tīrtha, explicitly named in the verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

An implicit prescription: to approach Mahākāla tīrtha and accept/choose Mahākāla through devotion and sacred resolve.