Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

यत्किंचित्तत्र संस्थं तु आद्यतीर्थं सुरालयम् । तत्सर्वं व्यन्तरैस्तैश्च पांसुभिः परिपूरितम्

Transliteration

yatkiṃcittatra saṃsthaṃ tu ādyatīrthaṃ surālayam | tatsarvaṃ vyantaraistaiśca pāṃsubhiḥ paripūritam

Translation

Bất cứ điều gì được thiết lập tại đó—tīrtha nguyên sơ và chốn ngự của chư thiên—tất thảy đều bị các vyantara cùng bụi đất lấp kín, nghẹt đầy.

Word by Word

• yat: whatever/that which
• yat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• kiṃcit: something, anything
• kiṃcit: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kiṃcid (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; अनिश्चितवाचक (indefinite)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb)

• saṃstham: situated, existing
• saṃstham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saṃstha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle), विरोध/अन्वयार्थक

• ādya-tīrtham: the prime/first sacred ford (tīrtha)
• ādya-tīrtham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ādya (प्रातिपदिक) + tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (ādyaḥ tīrthaḥ)

• surālayam: abode of the gods
• surālayam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक) + ālaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (surāṇām ālayaḥ)

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; निर्देशार्थक सर्वनाम

• sarvam: all, entire
• sarvam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• vyantaraiḥ: by/with vyantaras (a class of beings)
• vyantaraiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyantara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन

• taiḥ: by those
• taiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन; विशेषण (vyantaraiḥ इत्यस्य)

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

• pāṃsubhiḥ: with dust
• pāṃsubhiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāṃsu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन

• paripūritam: filled up, completely filled
• paripūritam: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pari + √pṝ (पूरण) (धातु) → paripūrīta (कृदन्त-भूतकर्मणि)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle)

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Ādyatīrtha (as named in the verse)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvijottamāḥ (addressed audience)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A once-luminous primeval tīrtha and celestial precinct is shown choked by swirling dust; shadowy vyantaras crowd and obscure shrines, turning a sacred landscape into a veiled, haunted expanse.

Characters & Entities

• Ādyatīrtha
• Surālaya
• Vyantaras
• Dust (pāṃsu)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even ancient holy places can become veiled; dharma includes rediscovering, cleansing, and reestablishing sacred spaces.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The “Ādyatīrtha” (primeval tīrtha) and its surālaya within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa narrative landscape.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implied: cleansing and restoration of the tīrtha precincts, though not yet detailed as a rite.