Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

को वा तीर्थप्रसंगश्च चातुर्मास्ये समीपगे । गालवः प्राह सच्छूद्रं धार्मिकं सत्यवादिनम्

Transliteration

ko vā tīrthaprasaṃgaśca cāturmāsye samīpage | gālavaḥ prāha sacchūdraṃ dhārmikaṃ satyavādinam

Translation

“یا پھر، جب چاتُرمَاسیہ قریب آ رہا ہے، تیرتھ کا کون سا مقدس موقع درپیش ہے؟” یوں گالَو نے اس نیک شودر سے کہا—جو دیندار اور سچ بولنے والا تھا۔

Word by Word

• kaḥ: who/what (is)
• kaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; प्रश्नवाचक सर्वनाम

• vā: or/indeed
• vā: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक-निपात (disjunctive particle)

• tīrtha-prasaṅgaḥ: the occasion/topic of the tīrtha
• tīrtha-prasaṅgaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक) + prasaṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (तीर्थस्य प्रसङ्गः)

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

• cāturmāsye: in the Cāturmāsya period
• cāturmāsye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cāturmāsya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन

• samīpage: when it is near/approaching
• samīpage: Adhikarana (Qualifier/अधिकरण-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: samīpaga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (cāturmāsye इति)

• gālavaḥ: Gālava
• gālavaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gālava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• prāha: said
• prāha: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √ah (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• sat-śūdram: the good śūdra
• sat-śūdram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sat (प्रातिपदिक) + śūdra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास

• dhārmikam: righteous
• dhārmikam: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dhārmika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (sat-śūdram इति)

• satya-vādinam: truth-speaking
• satya-vādinam: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: satya (प्रातिपदिक) + vādin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष (सत्यं वदतीति)

Speaker

Gālava

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Gālava questions the dhārmika, truth-speaking Paijavana about what tīrtha occasion is imminent with Cāturmāsya near; both appear earnest, with a sense of seasonal transition (monsoon clouds, first rains).

Characters & Entities

• Gālava
• Cāturmāsya
• Tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred time (Cāturmāsya) and sacred place (tīrtha) are intertwined; the wise inquire into the right occasion for pilgrimage and observance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse refers generally to tīrtha-prasaṅga (a pilgrimage context) without naming a specific site.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It signals Cāturmāsya as a key observance-season, prompting inquiry into appropriate tīrtha-related practices.