Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मणा प्रार्थितेनेदं स्वयमादिममुत्तमम् । पित्रादिष्टस्तु गांगेयस्तत्र वासमथाकरोत्

Transliteration

brahmaṇā prārthitenedaṃ svayamādimamuttamam | pitrādiṣṭastu gāṃgeyastatra vāsamathākarot

Translation

جب برہما نے درخواست کی تو یہ ازلی اور برتر کھیتر خود بخود ظاہر ہوا؛ پھر باپ کے حکم سے گانگیہ نے وہاں سکونت اختیار کی۔

Word by Word

• brahmaṇā: by Brahmā
• brahmaṇā: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; कर्तृकरणभावे—"by Brahmā"

• prārthitena: having been requested
• prārthitena: Hetu (Cause/Reason)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra + arth (अर्थ् धातु) + ita (क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (brahmaṇā)—"having been requested" / "when (he) requested"

• idam: this
• idam: Karma/Viṣaya (Object/Topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विषय/कर्म—"this"

• svayam: personally
• svayam: Prakāra (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: svayam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (स्वतन्त्रकर्तृवाचक) adverb "oneself"

• ādimam: primeval/first
• ādimam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ādima (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (idam)

• uttamam: excellent
• uttamam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (idam)

• pitṛ-ādiṣṭaḥ: instructed by his father
• pitṛ-ādiṣṭaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक) + ādiṣṭa (ā + diś धातु, क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (gāṃgeyaḥ)—"instructed by (his) father"

• tu: then/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अवधारण/विरोध) particle

• gāṃgeyaḥ: Gāṅgeya (Bhīṣma)
• gāṃgeyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gāṃgeya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्ता

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक) adverb of place

• vāsam: dwelling/residence
• vāsam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्म

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अनन्तर/आरम्भ) sequential particle

• akarot: made/did
• akarot: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/अनद्यतनभूत), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

Speaker

Sūta (contextual continuation)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and the Naimiṣāraṇya ṛṣis (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brahmā in prayer; from the earth arises a radiant sacred landscape (svayaṃ-manifest kṣetra) with a temple silhouette; Gāṃgeya arrives, guided by a paternal directive, and establishes an āśrama/abode near the shrine.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Gāṃgeya (Bhīṣma)
• father of Gāṃgeya (Śantanu, implied)
• Gaṅgā (implied by epithet)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holy places are not merely geographical—they are self-manifesting centers of Dharma, approached through prayer and upheld by exemplary devotees.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The self-manifesting kṣetra of Chapter 75, associated in the narrative with Hāṭakeśvara and the Mahāsena shrine.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual; the emphasis is on prārthanā (devotional supplication) and residence/service at the kṣetra.