Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 96

Devanagari script

यथायथा नृत्यमाना स्वगात्रं विधुनोति च । तथातथा धुनोत्येव यत्पापं प्रकृतं पुरा

Transliteration

yathāyathā nṛtyamānā svagātraṃ vidhunoti ca | tathātathā dhunotyeva yatpāpaṃ prakṛtaṃ purā

Translation

جس جس انداز سے وہ ناچتے ہوئے اپنے اعضاء کو جنبش دیتی ہے، اسی اسی قدر وہ پہلے کیے ہوئے گناہوں کو جھاڑ دیتی ہے۔

Word by Word

• yathā-yathā: as and as; in whatever manner
• yathā-yathā: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरुक्ति-प्रयोगः (reduplicated adverbial correlatives)

• nṛtyamānā: dancing
• nṛtyamānā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: nṛt (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present active participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (fem. nom. sg.)

• sva-gātram: one's own body/limbs
• sva-gātram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (प्रातिपदिक) + gātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative: 'one's own'); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neut. acc. sg.)

• vidhunoti: shakes off; shakes
• vidhunoti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-dhū (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमानकाल/present), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन (3rd sg.)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• tathā-tathā: so and so; in that same manner
• tathā-tathā: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरुक्ति-प्रयोगः (correlative adverb)

• dhunoti: shakes off
• dhunoti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dhū (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमानकाल/present), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन (3rd sg.)

• eva: indeed; just
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक-निपात (emphatic particle)

• yat: which
• yat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neut. acc. sg.); विशेषण-रूपेण

• pāpam: sin
• pāpam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neut. acc. sg.)

• prakṛtam: done; committed
• prakṛtam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-kṛ (धातु)
• Form: भूतकाले क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neut. acc. sg.); विशेषण-रूपेण

• purā: formerly; earlier
• purā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (temporal adverb)

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devoted woman dances in a sacred precinct; with each rhythmic shake of limbs, dark wisps symbolizing past sins fall away, while the tīrtha’s sanctity glows around her.

Characters & Entities

• Sāvitrī (Devī)
• Nṛtya (devotional dance)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Embodied devotion is purifying: sincere worship expressed through dance is depicted as actively cleansing past wrongdoing.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Sāvitrī-devī sacred site within Nāgarakhaṇḍa, Tīrthamāhātmya, Adhyāya 192.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Devotional nṛtya (dance) before the Devī is presented as a purificatory act that removes prior sins.