Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

यथा जलाच्च जंबालः कृष्यते धार्मिकैर्नृभिः । एवमुद्धरते साध्वी भर्त्तारं याऽनुग च्छति

Transliteration

yathā jalācca jaṃbālaḥ kṛṣyate dhārmikairnṛbhiḥ | evamuddharate sādhvī bharttāraṃ yā'nuga cchati

Translation

جس طرح نیک لوگ پانی سے کیچڑ نکالتے ہیں، اسی طرح ایک نیک بیوی اپنے شوہر کا درجہ بلند کرتی ہے جو اس کی پیروی کرتی ہے۔

Word by Word

• yathā: just as
• yathā: Sambandha (Comparative marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमानार्थक (as/just as)

• jalāt: from water
• jalāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (5th/Ablative), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-निपात (and)

• jaṃbālaḥ: mud/slush
• jaṃbālaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jaṃbāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• kṛṣyate: is drawn out/removed
• kṛṣyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛṣ (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• dhārmikaiḥ: by righteous
• dhārmikaiḥ: Karana (Agent in passive/कर्तृ-करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dhārmika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; विशेषण

• nṛbhiḥ: men
• nṛbhiḥ: Karana (Agent in passive/कर्तृ-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• evam: thus
• evam: Sambandha (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारार्थक (thus/in this way)

• uddharate: rescues/uplifts
• uddharate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud√hṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• sādhvī: the virtuous woman
• sādhvī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sādhvī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• bhartāram: husband
• bhartāram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhartṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• yā: she who
• yā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक-यत्

• anugacchati: follows
• anugacchati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu√gam (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narrative voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A riverside tīrtha: a righteous man draws mud from clear water while beside him a devoted wife supports her husband, symbolically lifting him from moral impurity; pilgrims and a small shrine in the background.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Virtue is portrayed as a rescuing power: steadfast righteousness can ‘raise’ another from a fallen state.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named in this verse; it is a moral-illustrative statement within the Tīrthamāhātmya flow.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse uses a simile to praise dharmic fidelity rather than prescribing a rite.